An 87-year-old man has been released on bail following his arrest for suspected involvement in the Yuen Long mob attacks in July 2019, after he apparently admitted taking part during an event broadcast live on the internet last Friday.
The man, surnamed Wong, who is suspected of rioting and conspiracy to injure with intent, was bailed out on Thursday night after being taken into custody earlier in the same day. He has been ordered to report back to the police in mid-September, the force said in a statement.
Pro-government YouTuber Alex Yeung organised a street booth in Yuen Long last Friday to collect signatures from people critical of a seven-year sentence passed on one of those convicted of the attack.
Police took action after the man was allegedly heard on a Stand News live stream confessing to hitting people during the incident in 2019 at Yeung’s event.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, Yeung said of the arrest: “OMG sorry! I got him into trouble. So Sorry! Sorry…”
Judge complaint halted
The attack on July 21, 2019 was one of the turning points in the months of protests that year. Over 100 rod-wielding men stormed Yuen Long MTR station and attacked travellers including returning protesters. Some 45 people were injured including journalists, protesters, commuters and pro-democracy lawmaker Lam Cheuk-ting.
Police were criticised for responding slowly to the incident, with some officers seen leaving the scene or interacting with the white-clad men. The official account of the incident evolved over a year, with the authorities eventually claiming it was a “gang fight.”
Seven men have been jailed over the incident for between three and a half and seven years.
Yeung later said he had decided to halt efforts to file a complaint against the judge who passed the seven-year sentence because such actions may constitute contempt of court as an appeal continues.
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