Taiwan auctioned off supercars, watches and handbags taken from an alleged romance-scam gang, turning stolen money back into cash for prosecutors — a win for victims and a warning to fraudsters.

• A seized Ferrari F8 Tributo with the license plate ending "7777" sold for NT$9.72 million, the top lot of the sale.
• Two days of bidding also cleared four luxury watches, four designer handbags and 31 hair dryers, for a total of NT$15.4 million.
• A Patek Philippe rose-gold watch drew the fiercest fight, with buyers trading 42 bids before it went for NT$2.6 million; a Hermès Birkin fetched NT$410,000.
• The gang is accused of trawling dating sites and using AI voice-cloning to pose as romantic partners, then pressuring victims into buying them expensive gifts.
• Prosecutors pushed the sale through in about three weeks to lock in the value of the assets while the criminal case continues.

Outlook: The cash and unsold items go back to prosecutors as the fraud investigation proceeds, and faster asset sales look set to become standard practice in Taiwanese scam cases.