Hong Kong police have arrested three local men in relation to a fireworks attack outside the Tin Shui Wai police station against protesters two weeks ago.

On Wednesday, the police arrested the men, aged between 26 and 34, in Yuen Long, on suspicion of illegal discharge of firecrackers and fireworks and using a false instrument. They were detained for investigation.

Tin Shui Wai fireworks
Photo: HKU Campus TV.

Fireworks were shot from a moving vehicle at a crowd protesting outside the police station in the early hours of July 31, leaving six people injured.

At the time, protesters were surrounding the police station to support two young people detained by police from the nearby Tin Sau rugby pitch.

YouTube video

The pair had tried to stop a man from taking photos of them and damaging the area’s “Lennon Wall” message board. The man claimed he was attacked and called the police.

The car used for the drive-by incident was a Toyota bearing the licence plate LP3369. However, public records showed that car registered with the plate should be a black Nissan, raising questions over whether the vehicle had false plates.

Kris Cheng is a Hong Kong journalist with an interest in local politics. His work has been featured in Washington Post, Public Radio International, Hong Kong Economic Times and others. He has a BSSc in Sociology from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Kris is HKFP's Editorial Director.