Taiwan

[palmspringsbum]

Actor on amphetamines charge on bail


2007/2/4
The China Post staff


A male entertainer nicknamed Taping was released Friday night on bail of NT$30,000 after being questioned by prosecutors for more than 10 hours over his illegal practice of taking amphetamines, according to the police.

Taping, 32 and officially named Yu Ping-hsien, was caught taking amphetamines at the WeGo Motel together with a friend early Friday morning.

When arrested, Taping tearfully asked the police to release him, but his request was turned down immediately because of the concrete evidence attesting to his taking the drug.

The police found four small bags of amphetamines with total weight of 3.64 grams in Taping's handbag, and found amphetamine-related paraphernalia at a table near the bed inside the WeGo Motel, located on the Linshen North Road.

After stepping out of the Panchiao District Prosecutors' Office late Friday night, Taping was soon surrounded by reporters and tearfully answered their questions. "In the beginning, I tried taking amphetamine mainly to control my weight, but got addicted to the drug later."

Taping said he has set a bad example for society, and therefore he voiced his deep apology to his friends, fans, working partners and particularly WeGo Motel, which has frequently granted him discounts on room rentals.

In early December, several more actors and singers, including Chang Li-wei, Hong Chi-teh, Huang Chung-kun, and Hsiao Shu-shen were also interrogated by the police and investigators on their alleged smoking of marijuana.

Prosecutors are casting a wider net after receiving reports that there still more celebrities in Taiwan's entertainment community have been using illegal drugs.

The crackdown on drug abuse is expected to intensify in view of public response to the negative publicity caused by a group of entertainers who tested positive for using prohibited drugs.

Despite the fact that marijuana is an illegal narcotic in Taiwan, over 60,000 people abuse the second-grade "soft drug," making it the third most abused drug among Taiwan's youth, according to the National Bureau of Controlled Drugs under the Cabinet-level Department of Health.

Although it is the Ministry of Justice's authority to decide whether the drug should be legalized for medical treatment purposes, the DOH prefers not to make it a lawful substance for fear there would be no end to the trouble if it is legalized, according to DOH officials.