Student undergoes amputations for insurance

A 23-year-old university student in Taiwan has had his legs amputated in an alleged insurance scam gone wrong.

Taiwan’s Criminal Investigation Bureau recently announced the student, identified as Chang, has been charged with insurance fraud.

According to local media, Chang allegedly kept his feet in a bucket filled with dry ice for 10 hours, leading to “severe frostbite and necrosis below the knees.” He applied for compensation from eight insurance policies after the amputation, allegedly hoping to pocket about $1.7 million, and claimed the frostbite was the result of riding a scooter at night.

Doctors sensed something was off, noting an absence of shoe or sock marks and the symmetry of his injuries, reports Business Insider. The weather was also not consistent with frostbite. In addition, Chang had taken out multiple insurance policies just days earlier.

Chang allegedly worked with a co-conspirator, identified as Liao, also 23. Chang claimed Liao was the mastermind, concocting a story that gang members were after him for an outstanding debt, when in reality Liao had incurred losses from trading cryptocurrency.

The indictment reportedly states that on Jan. 26, 2023, Chang and Liao rode scooters to purchase dry ice, and returned to Liao’s residence, where he used cable ties to restrain Change to a chair while he immersed his feet in the dry ice from 2 a.m. until after noon. Liao took photos and recorded some of the incident on his phone, according to the indictment.

Chang went to the hospital on Jan. 28, and his legs were amputated below the knees following more than a week of treatment. While he initially obtained nearly $10,000 through insurance claims, that money has since been seized.