Men who burned cardboard and threw bottles at police during Mong Kok riot ask to be spared jail after histories of mental illness revealed
- Counsel for Yung Wai-yip and Yuen Chi-kui say clients’ conditions contributed to crimes and they would be harmed by long prison sentences
- Mr Justice Albert Wong says he will seek reports on suitability of community service and probation order before sentencing
Two men who burned cardboard and hurled bottles at police during a riot in Hong Kong have asked to be spared jail due to their histories of mental illness.
Counsel for Yung Wai-yip, 35, and Yuen Chi-kui, 28, on Thursday said their clients’ conditions of autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) had contributed to the crimes and would be harmed by long jail terms.
Mr Justice Albert Wong Sung-hau said he would seek reports on the suitability of community service and probation order before sentencing the men of prior clear record on May 9, but warned all options remained open. Rioting is punishable by 10 years’ imprisonment.
The case centred on a night of chaos on February 8, 2016 – which carried over into the next morning – that began with a row on Portland Street between hawker control officers and street food vendors, backed up by their supporters.
The mitigation hearing came after Wong lifted a reporting ban on events in the jury room that nearly brought the marathon trial to a halt last month, when court staff reported hearing strange noises and orchestral music when jurors were supposedly in strict isolation.
