Elderly Taiwan woman kicked in MRT priority seat fight charged for 2024 umbrella attack on young girl

An elderly woman, 73, whose altercation over the priority seat on a Taiwanese MRT train went viral in Sep. 2025, has been indicted on separate charges for a previous incident.

In Feb. 2024, she allegedly confronted a father and daughter, and hit the latter with an umbrella.

They too had been sitting on the priority seat, reported Focus Taiwan.

The elderly woman, surnamed Tseng, was charged with causing bodily harm to a minor from the umbrella attack, the Taipei District Prosecutors Office said in a statement.

The umbrella attack

Prosecutors said Tseng was riding on the Taipei Metro's Orange Line toward Minquan West Road Station at around 1:30pm on Feb. 4, 2024.

She had asked a man sitting with his young daughter to give up their priority seat.

When the man refused, Tseng allegedly struck the girl on the leg with an umbrella, causing a bruise on her leg.

Tseng reportedly did not comply with multiple summonses for questioning after the girl's father, surnamed Lee filed a police report.

A warrant for Tseng's arrest was issued leading to her indictment for intentional injury to a child by an adult under Taiwan's Child and Youth Welfare Act.

The viral MRT kick

Tseng went viral on social media in Sep. 2025 over an altercation where she had provoked and swung her bag at a passenger seated in a priority seat.

The agitated passenger proceeded to kick Tseng, sending her reeling across the carriage to the opposite row of seats.

Days later, Tseng who had also been previously jailed for shoplifting was arrested for yet another shop theft incident on Oct.1, 2025.

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