BEIJING, Mar. 8 -- Investigators in Taiwan yesterday said the "most likely suspect" in the election-eve shooting in the province was an unemployed man in his 50s who was depressed about the economy and committed suicide shortly after the attack.

    Yesterday's announcement did little to satisfy some of the skeptics who believe the March 19, 2004, shooting was a conspiracy rigged by the Taiwanese leader to gain sympathy and boost his chances of re-election.

    Chief investigator Hou You-yi said in Taipei that evidence linking the suspect, Chen Yi-hsiung, to the shooting included video footage of the crime scene, ballistics tests and testimony from his wife, who said her husband confessed to the shooting.

    "We think Chen was the mostly likely suspect. It was very clear," Hou said, noting that investigators had yet to recover the handgun.

    The attack lightly injured Chen Shui-bian in the stomach and hit his running mate Annette Lu's knee as they were riding in an open-top Jeep during a campaign parade in the southern city of Tainan.

    Chen was narrowly re-elected the next day, but his opponents challenged the results, saying the shooting unfairly swung last-minute sympathy votes his way.

    Investigators said yesterday the suspect was an unemployed worker in his 50s who once made tiles for construction.

    Hou said that the suspect was unhappy about the economy and Chen's governance and left notes on a desk calendar describing his feelings.

    Video footage never showed Chen Yi-hsiung firing shots, but investigators said that the suspect - balding and wearing a yellow jacket - was at the scene, just 700 meters from his home.

    The suspect's body was recovered from the Tainan harbor on March 29, and police suspected suicide because the man prepared a will for his wife.

(Source: Shanghai Daily)