HONG KONG, Dec 14, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Five Hong Kong teenagers have been
arrested in connection with the death of a man hit on the head by a brick
during clashes between pro- and anti-government protesters last month, police
said Saturday.
The three males and two females aged 15 to 18 were arrested on Friday on
suspicion of murder, rioting and wounding and had been detained pending
further investigation, police said in a statement.
The incident occurred in mid-November as the pro-democracy movement was in
its fifth month, with hardcore demonstrators engaged in a “blossom
everywhere” campaign across the city to stretch police resources.
Footage of the incident showed rival groups of protesters throwing bricks
at each other, during which a man was hit by a brick and fell to the ground.
The 70-year-old was rushed to hospital unconscious and certified dead the
following day.
He was the second person in less than a week to die in protest-linked
incidents.
Alex Chow, a 22-year-old university student, died on November 8 from head
injuries sustained during a fall in a multi-storey carpark while police and
protesters were clashing.
Although the events leading to his fall are unclear and disputed,
protesters have blamed police.
Allegations of police brutality are one of the movement’s rallying cries.
Thousands of Hong Kongers formed long lines to attend a memorial service
for Chow on Thursday ahead of his funeral.
Chow’s death was followed three days later by police shooting an unarmed
21-year-old protester in the abdomen, sparking days of unrest that culminated
in pitched battles on university campuses.
Hong Kong has been upended by six months of massive pro-democracy protests
that have seen violent clashes between police and hardcore demonstrators, as
well as regular transport disruption.
The past three weeks have seen a lull in the violence and vandalism after
pro-democracy parties won a landslide in local council elections.