6 young people arrested in Hong Kong after teen girl allegedly slapped 15 times
Video emerges of alleged assault on 14-year-old that took place last year, with some assailants heard urging others to ‘slap harder’
Hong Kong police have arrested six young people with some having a triad background on suspicion of repeatedly slapping a 14-year-old girl in a shopping centre last year after a video of the incident went viral.
The force said on Saturday that it had received a report from the victim the day before about an argument over “trivial matters” in a rear staircase of a Mong Kok shopping centre in August last year, with the teenage girl allegedly slapped multiple times.
Senior Inspector Lau Kwan-ho said the victim was attacked by about 10 youngsters, and the assault was suspected to have been triggered by a verbal conflict.
Police arrested a male and five female suspects, aged 15 to 22, he said, adding that some of them had a triad background.
Lau said the victim and her attackers were friends living in Yau Tsim Mong district.
“Police urge anyone who encounters violence to report it immediately as we have zero tolerance for it,” he said.
