Taiwanese Man Threw 100 Cockroaches in Restaurant... Was It Due to Service Complaints?

Cockroach Attack at Famous Taiwanese Restaurant

Crime Motivated by Grudge Over Restaurant Service

Prosecutors to Further Investigate Motive and Possible Instigator

A man in his twenties has been arrested by police in Taiwan for throwing more than 100 live cockroaches into a famous restaurant.

Poured Over 100 Cockroaches in Restaurant and Fled

Taiwan Restaurant's 'Cockroach Terrorist' Arrested. Yonhap News

According to Taiwan's Central News Agency (CNA) and United Daily News on September 1, Taiwanese police arrested a 29-year-old man, surnamed Wei, on the afternoon of August 31 on charges including obstructing business operations and endangering the safety of a restaurant owner and employees.

Wei is accused of entering a restaurant in Tainan, southern Taiwan, at around 12:30 p.m. on August 29, shouting profanities, and then pouring a bag containing over 100 live cockroaches onto the cash register before fleeing the scene. The cockroaches quickly scattered across the restaurant floor, causing panic among diners who screamed in shock. Wei was subsequently apprehended by the police, and Taiwanese prosecutors requested a detention warrant from the court.

The Tainan District Prosecutors' Office stated in a press release the previous day that "the investigation revealed serious charges of coercion and intimidation under the Criminal Code, as well as concerns about flight risk, destruction of evidence, and potential repeat offenses, which led us to request a detention warrant." It added, "Since the motive for the crime, as given by the defendant, is still unclear, we will continue to investigate further evidence and facts." However, the court allowed Wei to be released on bail under the condition of restricting his residence, with a bail amount set at 30,000 New Taiwan dollars (approximately 1.3 million won).

According to United Daily News, Wei reportedly stated that he committed the crime out of resentment towards the restaurant over its service attitude, which had previously led to an argument. However, prosecutors determined that he was not giving the full truth regarding whether the motive was indeed that simple or if someone else was behind the incident.

Another Cockroach Throwing Incident in 2021... The Offender Was Sentenced to Six Months in Prison

The restaurant is conducting emergency quarantine and disinfection. Restaurant social media (SNS)

This was not the first case in Taiwan involving cockroaches as an instrument of revenge. In 2021, an individual who was in conflict with a creditor due to debt issues purchased around 10,000 cockroaches and threw them into a restaurant and a building lobby. At that time, the main culprit was found guilty of intimidation and sentenced to six months in prison.

Local media have commented that red cockroaches, sometimes used as pet food, are readily available online at relatively low prices in Taiwan, leading to cases where they are misused for debt collection or acts of revenge.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.