Hong Kong police confirmed that they have arrested six men on suspicion of the unlawful assembly in connection to the attacks in Yuen Long MTR station on Sunday night.
Senior Superintendent Chan Tin-chu of the New Territories North Regional Crime Headquarters told reporters that the thugs aged from 24 to 54 and allegedly had gang links. These men were detained following a violent attack on pro-democracy protesters and others inside a subway station with metal rods and wooden poles, injuring 45 people including one pregnant women and the other in critical condition.
Chan said that several of the suspects are villagers, and their occupations ranges from drivers and hawkers to renovation workers while the others had more mundane professions.
“Some of them have triad backgrounds,” he said. “I believe that more … will be detained soon. Police will not condone any form of violence.”
The authorities are still conducting an investigation for the motive behind the attack. Chan did not disclose any further details on the alleged links to the triads such as the 14K and Wo Shing Wo triad gangs, a powerful organized crime syndicates in Hong Kong. These gangs control certain neighborhoods in the city and are believed to have strong political background.
More than 100,000 people took part in the latest rally in the city earlier that day to demand democracy and an investigation into the use of force by police to disperse crowds at the summer-long protests. Some protesters on Sunday directed their ire at China, pelting its office in Hong Kong with eggs, spray-painting a wall and defacing the Chinese national emblem.
As demonstrators made their way home, the white-clad men descended on a group of them at the subway station. Videos showed them charging into the trains and beating up people who tried to defend themselves with umbrellas.
The Hong Kong police have been criticised for their slow response on the incident while Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam strongly denied that government backed up the assailants.
On Monday, several local shops and bank branches in New Territories districts decided to shut their doors early while few pedestrians were seen on the streets after rumours circulated online that more protests are expected on the following days. But the latest violence became a nightmare for everyone that China’s People’s Liberation Army may intervene.
