Information reaching our desks has it that a 73-year-old woman, surnamed Tseng (曾), was fined NT$24,000 (approx. $760) after being caught on video kicking a transgender passenger during a heated altercation over a priority seat on the Taipei Metro.
The jaw-dropping clash unfolded on the Red Line near Xinyi Anhe Station on Monday afternoon, shocking commuters and later going viral across Taiwanese social media.
Footage shows Tseng demanding that a young passenger vacate the priority seat. When they refused, she lashed out with her tote bag, striking them several times. The passenger, identified as a transwoman, then retaliated with a swift kick, sending the elderly woman flying across the carriage into another seat.
Taipei Metro later confirmed that operations were not disrupted, but authorities quickly launched an investigation after furious commuters reported the incident.
Both Tseng and the transwoman were fined under the Social Order Maintenance Act — Tseng NT$24,000 for assault, and the passenger NT$18,000 ($565) for retaliatory violence.
In a shocking twist, Tseng was arrested Wednesday morning outside a convenience store on Yanping North Road after “causing a commotion.” Police later confirmed she was wanted on an outstanding warrant for larceny, following multiple shoplifting incidents in 2023.
Reports reveal she had previously been sentenced to 55 days in prison for theft in June but failed to report, prompting prosecutors to issue the warrant.
Authorities say both parties will be summoned again for questioning over the metro fight, while Tseng faces separate legal consequences for her repeated theft cases.
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