HONG KONG – A 36-year-old overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who was recently detained in Hong Kong after allegedly participating in the ongoing massive protest on Saturday was charged with being part of an unlawful assembly.
Jethro Pioquinto, 36, came to the region in 2008 and started working as a dancer at Hong Kong Disneyland.
He appeared before Kowloon City Magistrate Raymond Kwok and was allowed to post bail for $2,000 (P13,000) as his lawyer insisted that he was innocent.
“He is just a passerby. He was on his way home on that day,” Pioquinto’s lawyer told Judge Kwong, adding that the suspect lives in Mong Kok.
Pioquinto, wearing a striped brown shirt, appeared in court while his right arms had a gauze for an “abrasion” he got when he was tackled by Hong Kong police.
His lawyer asked the court if it would allow his client to proceed with his vacation in the Philippines since Pioquinto already bought his plane ticket on July 24 for a one week vacation with his family whose currently living in Marikina City.
The OFW promised to return to Hong Kong on August 23 but Kok rejected the request.
“Given the seriousness of the allegations, we strongly oppose the lifting of the condition of not leaving Hong Kong,” the prosecutor said.
Kok also added that Pioquinto was allegedly one of the protesters “who refused to leave despite repeated warnings from the police.”
However, his lawyer defended that Pioquinto does not know how to speak their local language and could have not understood the orders given to him by the police.
He even pointed out there were no protest paraphernalia recovered in Poquinto’s possession at the time of the arrest.
Poquinto was also ordered to regularly report to Mong Kok Police station and observe a curfew from 12 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The defendant is set to appear again in court on September 30 to find out if the authorities will proceed the charge of unlawful assembly.
If the police decided to pursue, said offense carries a penalty of up to five years imprisonment.
