TAIPEI, Taiwan, March 29 (UPI) -- Three U.S. forensic experts Monday began an independent investigation into the shooting of Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian March 19.
Coroner Cyril Wecht, ballistics specialist Michael Haag and crime scene expert Timothy Palmbach met with officials at Taiwan's Criminal Investigation Bureau in Taipei, China Times Online reported.
The team later went to Tainan to investigate the scene of the shooting and the hospital where Chen Shui-bian and Vice President Annette Lu were treated for their wounds. The team will return to the United States Tuesday with samples and evidence.
The experts came at the request of former Connecticut police commissioner Henry Lee. Taiwan Supreme Court State Public Prosecutor Gen. Lu Ren-fa invited Lee, a former police captain in Taipei, to assist in the investigation.
Opposition parties had called for an independent investigation, suggesting Chen might have faked the shooting to win sympathy votes on the eve of the election.
Law enforcement officials and the opposition parties have offered $600,000 in rewards for information on the shooting.
