The couple, surnamed Liu, live in Miaoli and have a combined age of 122 years old.

In a moment of passion last year, the couple photographed themselves having sexual intercourse.

“It's not as if either of us were having an affair... it doesn't matter who gets to see the photos!” the couple said.

In response, the police described the couple as “bold.”

On December 15 last year, the couple's van was stolen. In the van were more than NT$80,000 in cash, and a digital camera in which the photos were stored.

Hsu Chu-yuan, one of the five detained by Miaoli prosecutors yesterday, called the Liu residence on February 23 and 26 this year.

He spoke to Ms. Liu, threatening to distribute their photos to their neighbors unless he was paid NT$1.8 million.

Ms. Liu flatly refused Hsu's request, saying that she had no money and that it was up to him to do what he wished with the photos.

Hsu attempted to negotiate a price with Ms. Liu, lowering his request to NT$5,000 at one point. However, Ms. Liu persistently refused to be blackmailed.

Hsu then solicited the help of his friends, Lai Shu-sheng and Yang Te-hui. On March 4, Lai printed 8 of the photos out and placed them in the Liu residence's mailbox.

The Lius refused to give in, and called the police for assistance.

In cooperation with the police, the Lius pretended to agree to give Hsu and his friends NT$20,000 in exchange for the photos.

They were given fake bills instead, and were tracked down by the license plate of the car they drove to pick up the money from the Lius.

After more than a month of investigations, the Miaoli District Prosecutors Office arrested the five men suspected to be behind the blackmail yesterday.

The five men are Hsu (35), Lai (38), Yang (36), Lin Yu-cheng (49), and Tseng Wen-chin (54).

The Miaoli County Police Bureau suggest that when receiving a blackmail call, the recipient should stay calm, ask for the identity of the caller, record the phone number or any other details that would enable the police to track the caller, and in the case of a kidnapping, ask to verify that the victim is safe.