A 17-year-old has been arrested over attacking two security guards outside the Hong Kong government headquarters, police have confirmed.

Police
Hong Kong Police Force. File photo: Kelly Ho/HKFP.

Police received a report about the incident at 10.21 am on Wednesday. Local media reported that a person with a knife allegedly attacked two security guards near the footbridge above Harcourt Road, outside the East Wing entrance of the Central Government Offices.

The suspect, who police said was 17, reportedly slashed one guard on the wrist, while the other was left with a twisted ankle.

According to a statement, a 57-year-old male security guard sustained an injury to his hand, and a 60-year-old male security guard suffered a leg injury. The teen was reportedly subdued by other security guards and passers-by, and both guards were sent to Queen Mary Hospital for treatment.

Officers then arrived on the scene and cordoned off the area. A paring knife, a black backpack, and a vacuum flask lay on the ground where the attack took place, local media reported.

hk gov hq government building headquarters
Photo: Peter Lee/HKFP.

The teen was arrested on suspicion of wounding, and is being detained for enquiries. The District Crime Squad of Central District is conducting an active investigation into the attack and the suspect’s motive.

After the incident, the government Administration Wing instructed security personnel at the government headquarters to “remain vigilant,” a government spokesperson said in a separate statement issued on Wednesday.

“The police have also increased patrols in the vicinity of the government headquarters to ensure the safety of government officials, visitors, and citizens,” the statement read.

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James Lee is a reporter at Hong Kong Free Press with an interest in culture and social issues. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English and a minor in Journalism from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where he witnessed the institution’s transformation over the course of the 2019 extradition bill protests and after the passing of the Beijing-imposed security law.

Since joining HKFP in 2023, he has covered local politics, the city’s housing crisis, as well as landmark court cases including the 47 democrats national security trial. He was previously a reporter at The Standard where he interviewed pro-establishment heavyweights and extensively covered the Covid-19 pandemic and Hong Kong’s political overhauls under the national security law.