2 men believed to have ‘anti-gov’t’ stance arrested by Hong Kong police over possessing explosives
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong police have arrested two men on suspicion of manufacturing or possessing explosives. Authorities said they were believed to have an anti-government stance.
The two men, 33-year-old Ho Chi-hin and 34-year-old Ng Tsz-kit, appeared at the Eastern Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday after they were arrested on Sunday near Nam Fung Road in Aberdeen. Their names are translated from media reports in Chinese.
They each faced three counts of manufacturing or possessing explosives, an offence that carries a maximum sentence of 14 years’ imprisonment, police said. They were granted bail.
“Based on some items we found in their homes, including politics-related pamphlets, and [the fact that] they have joined anti-government groups on social media, we believe they have an anti-government stance,” Chief Inspector Wong Chi-yu of the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau told reporters on Monday, speaking in Cantonese.
During their arrest on Sunday, the men were allegedly found to be in possession of a sickle, an axe, and a hammer in their possession.
Police also discovered tools including a furnace, metal containers, about a kilogram of chemicals, and storage vessels in a hole nearby. The hole – covered with planks and a camouflage tarp – was approximately one metre long, half a metre wide, and half a metre deep.
“There are still agitators in Hong Kong who persist in conducting disruptive acts,” Wong said, but added that the police believed the two men did not have a clear objective or target.
Officers also found a site used for explosives tests with packaging bags that were suspected to have contained chemicals.
Authorities subsequently searched the men’s homes in Ap Lei Chau and Chai Wan and seized some 30 kg of various types of chemicals, scales, distillation equipment, laboratory apparatus, mobile phones, laptops, and notes on making explosives.
Following a preliminary examination, the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Bureau found that some of the chemicals could have been used to manufacture homemade explosives.
Investigations are ongoing, and the police said it would not rule out further arrests.
Their case was adjourned to February 20 next year after the prosecution said more tests had to be run on the chemicals.
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