Taiwanese police arrest Vietnamese man for illegally logging, CNA says

Police in Taiwan have arrested a Vietnamese man suspected of illegal logging, and found out he also ran away from his legal job more than two years ago, Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported.

Police caught the suspect during a patrol on Sunday as he was transporting wood in the mountainous area of Alishan in Taiwan's southwestern county of Chiayi, the report said. Taiwan is the biggest market for Vietnam's labor export.

Police said a sedan car suddenly changed direction after spotting the police, which led them to follow and stop the vehicle for a check. They found 34 small blocks of cypress stuffed in the back of the car, which were worth tens of thousands of dollars, the report said.

It quoted the Vietnamese driver, found to have run away from his labor contract two years ago, as telling the police he was hired for transporting the logs.

Police said they would continue investigation as they suspected a criminal gang was behind the logging.

Taiwan has taken nearly 70,000 Vietnamese workers in 2016, or more than half the total workers the latter sent overseas last year, Vietnam's labor ministry said.

Around 1,000 Vietnamese workers in Taiwan ran away each month in 2015, almost twice the monthly average in 2014, the ministry said. Most of them were reaching the end of their contract but wanted to stay and find other jobs.

Many Vietnamese were also caught for illegal logging in Taiwan last year, according to media reports.