A woman surnamed Huang from Taichung was hiking in Xinyi Township when she picked up a 9-kilogram piece of wood she wanted to take home for decoration. She was caught by officers from the 6th Battalion of the 7th Brigade of the National Police Agency’s Preservation Corps and only then learned it was valuable Taiwan red cypress. Although the police sympathized with her ignorance of the law, they still transferred the case to the Nantou District Prosecutors’ Office for investigation.
The 6th Battalion of the 7th Brigade received a report from staff at the Shuili Work Station of Nantou Forest Management Office, who noticed suspicious vehicles entering and exiting the Jundai Forest Road in Xinyi Township under their jurisdiction. They increased patrols in the mountain area and caught the woman stealing the precious Taiwan red cypress. The woman claimed she had picked it up casually during her hike and had no idea it was a protected tree species.
Zhang Yuqi, captain of the 6th Battalion of the 7th Brigade, stated that forest products—both primary and secondary—from state-owned forest areas cannot be collected without proper application and permission. He urged the public not to test the law.
(China Times)