Taoyuan: A Taoyuan man who previously served a decade in prison for the murder of his girlfriend has been detained and ordered to be held incommunicado on suspicion of murdering his ex-girlfriend, as announced by prosecutors on Wednesday.

According to Focus Taiwan, the Taoyuan District Prosecutors Office reported receiving notification of the murder case from the Taoyuan Police Department’s Pingzhen Precinct on Monday. The suspect, a 49-year-old man identified by his surname Lee, confessed to killing his ex-girlfriend, Chou, near her residence in the Pingzhen District early on Monday morning.

During questioning, Lee revealed that he had arranged to meet Chou to persuade her to rekindle their relationship. Chou, concerned about disturbing her relatives, suggested moving their discussion to a nearby vacant lot. It was there, prosecutors stated, that Lee became enraged by Chou’s demeanor and proceeded to strangle her.

On Wednesday, the Taoyuan District Court granted prosecutors’ request to detain Lee and hold him incommunicado as he faces investigation on murder charges. This development draws attention to Lee’s past, as he was previously sentenced to 18.5 years in prison in 2009 for the strangulation death of his then-girlfriend in Taoyuan’s Yangmei District in 2008. Lee was paroled in 2019 for good behavior after serving 10 years and had recently finished his probation.

Under Taiwan’s Criminal Code, charges of murder can result in severe penalties, including death, life imprisonment, or a minimum of 10 years in prison, contingent on the specific circumstances of the crime. Additionally, Taiwan’s Cabinet recently approved a draft bill in late October aimed at eliminating parole for individuals sentenced to 10 years or more for crimes such as murder, attempted murder, and child abuse that results in severe injury or death. This bill is awaiting legislative approval to become law.