Taiwanese prosecutors on Oct. 7 indicted four private investigators accused of secretly monitoring Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker and candidate for Taipei mayor Puma Shen and his family on behalf of two Hong Kong residents. The surveillance overlapped with Beijing’s move to place Shen on its blacklist of people it labels supporters of “Taiwan independence.”
The Taipei District Prosecutors Office said the four Taiwanese defendants were charged under the Personal Data Protection Act. Prosecutors also issued wanted notices for Hong Kong residents Kuk Kok Yin and Lam Hing, who allegedly commissioned the operation and had left Taiwan.
Beijing unilaterally placed Shen on its list of people it calls “diehard Taiwan independence separatists” on Oct. 14, 2024—while the alleged surveillance was underway—and imposed sanctions on him and Kuma Academy, a civil defense organization. In October 2025, Chinese public security authorities opened a criminal investigation into Shen for alleged separatist activities, with Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office saying the action implemented its guidelines for criminally pursuing people it places in that category.
That characterization differs from the DPP’s stated position. Its 1999 Resolution on Taiwan’s Future says Taiwan is already a sovereign and independent state and, under its current Constitution, is called the Republic of China. The resolution says Taiwan does not belong to the People’s Republic of China and that any change to its existing status must be decided by Taiwan’s people.
President Lai Ching-te reiterated that position in May, saying Taiwan is already a sovereign and independent democratic country, and there is no “Taiwan independence” issue. He also said the Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China are not subordinate to each other.
The Taipei mayoral race is Nov. 28.
Camera Hidden Outside Shen’s Home
Prosecutors alleged that Kuk and Lam commissioned Taiwan-based private investigator Cheng Yung-chin, who heads two private investigation companies, on Sept. 5, 2024, to monitor Shen. Kuk transferred HK$99,950.09 (about $12,800) for the assignment.
Cheng subcontracted the job for NT$180,000 (about $5,600) to private investigator Hsieh Yi-chen. Hsieh then assigned employees Chiang Wen-hsin and Hou Kai-han, among others, to carry out the surveillance.
Cheng’s Union Detective website publicly advertises cross-border investigative services and says it forms investigative teams with private detective agencies in Hong Kong and mainland China.
The company did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.
Prosecutors said Kuk and Lam traveled from Hong Kong to Taiwan on Sept. 27, 2024, after becoming dissatisfied with the progress of the surveillance.
Because a security officer accompanying Shen was watching for anyone tailing him, Chiang had difficulty carrying out the physical surveillance, prosecutors said. Hsieh then proposed installing recording equipment outside Shen’s home.
Chiang allegedly had a company employee park a scooter outside Shen’s residence in Taipei’s Daan District and installed a miniature camera beneath its seat, pointing it toward the entrance.
From Oct. 1 through Nov. 8, 2024, Chiang used a mobile-phone application connected to the camera to monitor the home around the clock, prosecutors alleged. Chiang, Hou, and others also went to the residence by car and used the hidden camera or mobile phones to record Shen, his wife, and his daughter entering and leaving. The images were sent through a Telegram group to Cheng, who forwarded them to Kuk.
Prosecutors Cite ‘Hostile External Forces’
Prosecutors alleged that Cheng knew that “hostile external forces” had suppressed speech by Taiwanese political figures and collected information about their activities.
They said Cheng nevertheless accepted Kuk’s commission, monitored Shen, and passed information about Shen’s activities to “hostile external forces.”
Prosecutors recommended an 18-month prison sentence for Cheng if he’s later convicted, saying he repeatedly gave evasive answers during questioning and had not shown genuine remorse.
Shen said in an Oct. 7 Threads post that in 2024, when he disclosed finding a hidden camera outside his home, he was mocked and accused of paranoia. He said the indictment he received showed that the assignment specifically included photographing his daughter.
Shen said separately to reporters on Wednesday that he believed he might not have been the only person targeted and that he would strengthen his security.
