The attack provoked shock and unease in Taiwan, where political violence of this kind was commonplace against non-KMT members 40 years earlier.
Some including Lu pointed to Beijing and the People's Republic of China for orchestrating the attack because of her and Chen's stance supporting Taiwanese independence from the mainland.
[2] The opposing Pan-Blue supporters believed that the incident was faked in order to win the sympathy of voters in the upcoming election, which Chen and Lu won by 29,500 votes.
[1][2] The other bullet penetrated the windshield and hit a cast on Lu's knee which she was wearing due to an earlier injury and was later found in the vehicle.
[1] The president returned to his official residence by 9:00 pm and, in a video released to the public, he urged the Taiwanese people to remain calm and indicated that neither his health nor the security of Taiwan was threatened.
[2] These speculations were considered highly offensive by both camps[citation needed] and were not condoned by the leaderships of the two sides until after Chen had already won the election.
There were several people the police wanted to question based on erratic behavior, such as leaving the scene in a hurry as recorded by surveillance camera.
The commission was also authorized to command a government prosecuting attorney, to unilaterally utilize the disaster reserve funds from the Executive Yuan, and to override court verdicts.
[11] Forensic scientist Henry Lee submitted a 130-page report and a CD containing 150 photos to Andrew Hsia, director general of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York on 29 August 2004.
[citation needed] On 9 September 2004, three men – Yeh Ho-chiang, 37, Chen Ching-hung, 33, and Huang Chin-shou, 43 – were arrested at an illegal weapons factory near Tainan possessing bullets matching those found at the crime scene.
Chen was living in the vicinity and resembled one of the unknown persons shown on police tapes in the hot zone (the "yellow coat bald guy").
On the other hand, Huang also committed suicide with a gun that was made from the same manufacturer as that of the incident, and the bullet found shared traits with the one that hit the vice-president.
[3] Lu "cited exiled Chinese academic Yuan Hongbing as saying that Beijing might have plotted the assassination to polarize Taiwan as part of its scheme to annex the nation.
"[3] Allegedly, Hu Jintao and PLA officer Xin Qi plotted to injure Chen and Lu without fatally wounding them.
Moreover, it was aimed "at damaging Taiwan's democracy and making Taiwanese believe that elections were rigged, but it had to see Chen Shui-bian and Lu re-elected so that the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), losing power and authority, would be willing to succumb to China.