In connection with the question of the origin of the pagers that exploded in Lebanon, the Taiwanese Public Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into possible production companies. The focus is on the head of the Taiwanese company Gold Apollo, who says he was surprised by the events.
Two people, including Gold Apollo boss Hsu Ching-kuang, were questioned as witnesses, Taiwanese investigators said Friday. At least 12 people were killed and 2,800 wounded when Hezbollah members’ pagers exploded on Tuesday.
Gold Apollo came into the picture after The New York Times reported that Israel had planted explosives in a shipment of the company’s pagers. Hsu had denied any connection between his company and the devices; they were manufactured by licensees in Europe. New findings suggest that these were Mossad front companies.
House searches in Taipei
Prosecutors said Hsu and a woman from another company were questioned multiple times on Thursday and then fired. Investigators said they would “clarify as soon as possible” whether Taiwanese companies were involved in the explosions. Four properties were also searched in Taipei, located in the neighborhoods where Gold Apollo and Apollo Systems are located.
According to Taiwanese media, the Apollo Systems employee interviewed, identified as Wu Yu-jen or Teresa Wu, has ties to the Hungarian company BAC Consulting Kft. BAC manufactured the pagers that later exploded in Lebanon, Gold Apollo said Wednesday. Gold Apollo has entered into a “long-term partnership” with Budapest-based BAC to use its trademark, the company said. The model named in the media reports was “manufactured and sold by BAC.”
Hungary denies connections
A Hungarian government spokesman subsequently stated that BAC has no production facilities in Hungary. The head of the company, which presents itself on its website as a consultancy, also denied to the American broadcaster NBC that it had manufactured the devices, explaining that it only acted as an intermediary. Shortly after the reference to the pagers was made public, the homepage of BAC Consulting was removed.
According to reports in the Hungarian media, the company, which according to the Hungarian commercial register was founded in 2022, is registered with several other companies in a single-family house in Budapest. It therefore has no office space or representatives on site.
There was also an investigation into the pager explosions in Bulgaria. The secret service said it was investigating the possible involvement of a Sofia-based company called Norta Global. According to media reports, this company, which according to the Bulgarian commercial register was also founded in 2022, does not have its own office – like BAC in Budapest – but is registered with almost 200 other companies at a common address. Bulgaria’s domestic intelligence agency DANS confirmed on Friday that the pagers used in Lebanon were not imported to, exported from or manufactured in Bulgaria.
An outside company terminated the online presence
According to the company register, the owner of Norta Global is said to be a man living in Norway. The company’s website globalnorta.com was no longer reachable on Friday. The company’s founder, who lives in Oslo, did not want to comment on the phone to Reuters and hung up. His employer, the Norwegian media company DN Media, emphasized to the news agency that they had taken note of the reports and called the police. The man is said to have left for the US.
Media also reported a lead to Austria. A representative of the Hungarian company BAC Consulting Kft, which designed and manufactured the pagers, is based in Austria, Gold Apollo board member Hsu said, according to the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.” However, Hsu never met this Austrian representative named “Tom” in person, but only spoke to him via video. The man set up a production of pagers with the Gold Apollo logo.
Confusion over connection with Austria
But he hasn’t delivered “Tom” in “almost three years,” Hsu said. It was initially unclear how “Tom” could pose as a representative of a company that was apparently founded much later in Hungary. According to the New York Times, the Mossad had been planning the operation for years. Israel itself has not yet claimed responsibility for the wave of attacks.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
