Protester shot during unrest pleads guilty to riot and perverting the course of justice

A young protester who was shot in Tsuen Wan at the peak of the social unrest pleaded guilty to rioting and perverting the course of justice on Thursday, following police’s recapture last July when he and three other wanted men were about to board a boat and flee to Taiwan. 

Twenty-one-year-old Tsang Chi-kin was charged with rioting over his involvement in a Tsuen Wan protest on the National Day in 2019. He later jumped bail and was again arrested by police in Pak Tam Chung on July 13 last year. 

Tsang, who was an 18-year-old student at the time, pleaded guilty to participating in the National Day riot and assaulting a police sergeant. 

Tsang and three co-defendants – 23-year-old Ansen Wong, 17-year-old Alex Wong Chun-yin and 35-year-old Yip Ho – also pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice for attempting to obstruct and disrupt the court’s judgment between October 2020 and July 13 last year. 

The District Court case was heard before Deputy Judge Ada Yim Shun-yee at the West Kowloon Court this morning. 

The court heard that under the arrangements of a man named Chan Sai-tak, a member of YouTube channel Tuesday Road, Tsang, Ansen Wong and Alex Wong attempted to seek asylum from the U.S. Consulate in October 2020 but in vain. 

The trio, with the assistance of Yip and the channel, then hid in hotels and rented units on Tsuen Wan and Kwai Chung. The four had also shot a video to defend the YouTube channel and to raise funds. 

In a recorded meeting with police, Tsang said he was approached by Chan in early 2020 and Chan kept persuading him to leave Hong Kong to avoid imprisonment. Chan later claimed he was involved in other cases and had moved to the U.K., and arranged Yip to care for the trio. 

Yip was responsible for harboring the three and had placed them in cardboard boxes during transition of their hideouts. Chan also threatened Tsang to shoot videos to call for other countries’ attention and to raise funds. Otherwise, he wouldn’t arrange for Tsang to leave Hong Kong. 

Ansen Wong told police he contacted Chan in February 2020 and paid him HK$200,000. He is a U.S. citizen and had a copy of his U.S. passport on him when he was arrested last July. 

Alex Wong also said he had paid the channel HK$350,000 in total for fleeing arrangements. 

The hearing was adjourned to October 18 for sentencing and all defendants were remanded in custody.