Hong Kong news reporter takes police chief to court over alleged assault by officers during Mong Kok riot

Lincoln Tang says officers dragged him off a bus, pushed him to the ground, kicked and then beat him with batons

Complaints Against Police Office previously judged his case to be inconclusive and not pursuable

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Rioting broke out in Mong Kok in 2016 following a hawker control operation. Photo: AP

Published: 8:30am, 4 Feb 2019Updated: 8:36pm, 4 Feb 2019

A Hong Kong news reporter is pursuing a legal claim against the city’s police chief over an alleged assault on him by officers while covering the Mong Kok riot three years ago.

Lincoln Tang Lik-hang, formerly with Chinese-language newspaper Ming Pao Daily, said police officers dragged him off a bus from where he was observing events, pushed him to the ground, kicked and then beat him with batons, even after he told them he was a journalist.

Tang lodged a report with the force’s internal Complaints Against Police Office (CAPO), but his case was thrown out last July after a 2½-year investigation judged his complaints to be “inconclusive” and “not pursuable”, despite media footage of the alleged attack on February 9, 2016.

Clashes went on through the night. Photo: Edward Wong

The force’s watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC), agreed with CAPO’s findings.

In a statement on Sunday, Tang said he would be submitting personal injury claims as the three-year time limit to commence such legal proceedings was coming up. He applied for legal aid last week.

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