Famously known for his role in the 2015 Taiwanese film Our Times, 33-year-old actor Darren Wang was taken into custody on March 4 for questioning in connection with an attempted murder case, later revised to “assault,” involving a private-hire driver. He allegedly orchestrated the attack through his friend Yu Hsiang-min in April 2024, less than a month after being arrested for evading mandatory military service.
Taiwanese news outlets reported that Wang requested an Uber while traveling in Taipei on April 18, 2024, and was allegedly displeased with the vehicle’s condition. A video clip that surfaced online showed him making rude gestures at the driver. While the original footage is now difficult to trace, screenshots captured from it remain circulating.
It was one long drive as the actor had apparently led in on an altercation with the driver as he suspected he took a farther route. Upon arriving at his destination, Wang had realised he left his keys and was not familiar with how to open the door of the vehicle, bringing him to bang on the car’s door window, sparking another quarrel with the driver.
CNA Lifestyle reported in their story that Wang later spoke about the incident to a friend, Yu Hsiang-min, and persuaded him to track down and assault the driver with another unknown accomplice days later. The friend and accomplice recorded a video of the severely beaten driver to report back to Wang, who later boasted about the attack to other friends by showing the footage. The victim had no idea who had ambushed him, leaving him in limbo with the injustice for almost a year, with no progress on his case.
All this would unknowingly be pushed forward by his very own perpetrator as Wang had been detained by authorities after his alleged attempt to evade Taiwan’s mandatory military services back in February. The video clip of the assault had been discovered by police in their investigation through searching his mobile phone, tracing back to the driver’s case.
The day after his arrest and questioning, the actor was released on bail of NT$1 million (₱8,724,748.87), and was greeted by a swarm of reporters who had been waiting outside of the station. Wang had no response to any of their questions and left with a mere “Thank you.”
In light of this, the actor’s father, a reputedly wealthy collector of antiques, shared his sentiments on the matter with Mirror Media, stating, “As a father, I am in pain seeing my child in such a situation. Regardless of what the outcome might be, he has to be accountable for his actions.”
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