Police Arrest Cody Wilson In Taiwan and Plan To Deport Him

Only a few days after the warrant was issued, police arrest Cody Wilson in Taiwan because he no longer had legal travel documents after his passport was canceled by US authorities.

Why Was A Warrant Issued?

If you aren't up to speed on why Wilson was arrested, you can read our previous coverage of Wilson's arrest warrant or read the brief overview below.

On September 19th a warrant for Wilson's arrest was filed in Travis County, Texas for the alleged sexual assault of a 16-year-old girl. Wilson is accused of meeting the girl on a website called SugarDaddyMeet.com then exchanging nude photos with her. Per the affidavit, Wilson then took the girl to an Austin area hotel and had sexual intercourse and oral sex with her then paid her 500 dollars. Once the victim and Wilson left the hotel he drove her to a fast-food restaurant and she walked to a parked car.

Wilson in Taiwan

Wilson flew to Taipei, Tawan after allegedly being told by a friend of the victim that she had spoken to police and he was being investigated for sex with a minor. It is not known if the trip was planned prior to the investigation or why Wilson traveled to Taiwan.

According to Apple Daily, Taiwan's National Immigration Agency (NIA) says that Wilson arrived in the country on September 6th on EVA Air Flight BR11, telling the Agency that he was in the country for business. NIA officers checked with the 5-star Mandarin Oriental Hotel located in the Songshan District of Taipei on September 20th to find that Wilson had suddenly checked out on the 7th even though Wilson had booked the hotel for three days. Immigration Agents were unable to determine Wilson's location at that time.

Taiwan's Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) told Taiwan News that Wilson could not be arrested for a crime, but if he was caught he could be deported back to the US in accordance with their immigration laws.

The Apartment Lease

Taiwan News reported late yesterday that Taiwan Police had learned Wilson had used a website to search for apartments on September 19th. Police also learned that he had reached out to a real estate agent by email about renting an apartment in the Zhongzeng District of Taipei.

According to the police investigation, Wilson signed a contract with the real estate agency on the 19th, the same day that the arrest warrant was issued. Wilson agreed to rent a studio apartment for six months starting on September 21st, paying a deposit of $587.51 USD (NT$18,000) and a first month's rent of $620.15 USD (NT$19,000). Wilson had not been given the keys to the apartment at the time the lease was signed.

UDN reported that when Wilson signed the lease, he told the rental agency that he was an American student who was studying Chinese at a university in Taiwan. The rental agency stated that Wilson appeared to not be different from the average student. The apartment that Wilson leased is located on Section 2, Nanchang Road in the Zhongzeng District, within a kilometer of National Taiwan Normal University and several other schools.

Wilson Positively Identified

Employees of the agency were surprised when they saw Wilson on the news a day after he had agreed to lease the apartment and contacted the authorities immediately according to a Taiwan News report. Police showed photographs of Wilson to the employees and they positively identified Wilson as the man who had signed the lease.

Once Wilson was positively identified, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) informed the American Institute in Taiwan, a non-profit organization that is staffed primarily by US State Department employees and acts as a de facto embassy, as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and other US law enforcement agencies.

Since the US agencies still needed to make a request for deportation, CIB did not place Wilson under arrest on the 20th. The National Immigration Agency was informed on the 19th that Wilson was wanted in connection with a sex crime in accordance with Megan's Law.

Police Arrest Cody Wilson & Deportation

On September 21st, police arrested Cody Wilson for being in Taiwan without legal travel documents in the Wanhua District of Taipei City according to a Taiwan News report. The news report also stated that the American Institute in Taiwan had canceled his passport, making his deportation from Taiwan to the United States possible.

Police learned that Wilson was suspected to be in a hostel located on Guangzhou Street in the Wanhua District according to the Central News Agency. After the police confirmed that Wilson was present, he was placed under arrest at 6 PM local time.

The National Immigration Agency released a statement after Wilson's arrest stating that Wilson had entered Taiwan legally without a visa. Since Wilson's passport was canceled, he was no longer legally in the country and was placed into custody. The Taiwanese Immigration Departement is currently working with the American Institute in Taiwan to secure the necessary documents to deport him back to the United States.

Once Wilson is back on US soil, he will undoubtedly be taken into custody by US Marshals and flown back to Texas.

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