TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Videos have surfaced showing the moment Taiwanese YouTuber Holger Chen (陳之漢) was shot in front of his gym in New Taipei City early Friday morning (Aug. 28).
At 2 a.m. on Friday, Chen was shot in front of his gym on Renai Road in New Taipei City's Linkou District, reported UDN. According to witnesses at the scene, an armed male fired at Chen three times, inflicting wounds to his right arm, right thigh, and right ankle.
By 11:24 a.m. that same day, former New Power Party (NPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌), who had previously joined with Chen in an anti-red media campaign, uploaded two surveillance camera videos showing the 23-year-old suspect, surnamed Liu (劉), suddenly opening fire on Chen. In the first video, Chen and his entourage can be seen walking toward a black SUV at the bottom of the screen.
Chen steps into the back seat while one companion enters the passenger side and a third man stands outside appearing to converse with Chen. Suddenly, Liu can be seen at the top of the screen darting toward the SUV.
Liu then takes a handgun out of a bag strapped to his chest and points the weapon toward Chen, discharging it three times in quick succession as he backpedals before beating a hasty retreat.
In the second video, a member of Chen's entourage can first be seen walking toward the driver's side of the SUV. Next, Chen and the two men seen in the previous video emerge from his gym.
One man holds the door as Chen steps inside and then takes a seat in the passenger side of the vehicle. The fourth friend mills outside the SUV, unwittingly blocking Liu's direct line of fire.
This forces Liu to run even closer to the vehicle to squeeze past the man and deliver three shots. Fortunately for Chen, the man on the passenger side swings open his door just as Liu fires his first shot, hitting his arms and preventing him from getting more than one clean shot off, possibly saving Chen's life.
Chen then tumbles forward out of the vehicle and sprawls onto the concrete. In the captions for both videos, Huang wrote that it appears Liu was aiming directly at Chen before the passenger door swung open.
Huang concluded that Liu's actions were more than just a simple "warning," as local media reports had speculated. He called on prosecutors to thoroughly investigate the "real criminal motive" and any accomplices Liu may have had.
Two of Liu's bullets hit the mark, with one round traveling through Chen's right arm and striking his right thigh, causing a comminuted fracture. The second bullet entered Chen's right calf and lodged in his right ankle.
Incredibly, shortly after being shot and while receiving first aid, Chen started a livestream broadcast to his fans on Facebook. Despite the pain and the sound of ambulances in the background, Chen was able to say: "I was shot twice. I hope that if I die this time, please everyone carry on my spirit, you must carry on my spirit."
Liu fled the scene on foot but later surrendered to police at Linkou Precinct Police Station, not far from the scene of the crime. After questioning Liu, police transferred him to the prosecutor's office to be investigated for attempted murder.
Doctors have completed seven hours of surgery to treat Chen's wounds, and he is listed as being in stable condition. Chou Ying-chao (周應照), an orthopedic trauma physician at Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, told the media at 11:30 a.m. that the operation went smoothly and that if there are no complications, Chen could be released within a week.
