A rioter is about to throw a Molotov cocktail at the police in Causeway Bay of south China's Hong Kong, Aug. 31, 2019. (Xinhua)
63 people have been arrested during Saturday's riots in Hong Kong for offences of criminal damage, possession of explosives and offensive weapons, and unlawful assembly, HK police say on Sunday.
HONG KONG, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong police said on Sunday that 63 people had been arrested during the riots on Saturday.
According to the police, 54 men and nine women, aged between 13 and 36, were arrested for offences including criminal damage, possession of explosives and offensive weapons, and unlawful assembly.
Speaking at a press conference, Acting Senior Superintendent Tsui Suk-yee of Kowloon West Regional (Crime) said that during the arrest operations, the police seized evidences including petrol bombs, gas masks, laser guns, steel balls, armors, helmets and umbrellas.
According to Tsui, two petrol bombs and lighters were found among the belongings of a 13-year-old suspect. A batch of petrol bombs were also seized by police on the platform of Prince Edward MTR Station.
In the above-mentioned cases, suspects had posed a severe threat to public safety and social order, said Tsui.
After obtaining legal advice from the Department of Justice, some arrested suspects would be prosecuted, said Tsui, adding that the police did not rule out more arrests in coming days.
Violent protesters set fires near the police headquarters in Wan Chai of south China's Hong Kong, Aug. 31, 2019. (Xinhua)
The police had rejected the application of a public procession on Hong Kong Island on Saturday to ensure the safety of residents and public order after several similar events turned extremely violent since early June.
However, protesters on Saturday defied the police ban by occupying downtown roads. During their marches, some radical protesters smashed traffic lights and dismantled roadside railings to set up barricades to confront the police.
Black-clad rioters who wore mask and helmet attempted to storm the headquarters buildings of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government and the Legislative Council, using sling shots to fire petrol bombs and other objects into the buildings before they set fires on a main street near the Hong Kong police headquarters.
Rioters confronted police in various areas on Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and New Territories, hurling petrol bombs in different places and attacking police officers with corrosive liquid and bricks.
They also set fires in different places, vandalized public property, set up barricades, and damaged facilities at MTR stations such as platform screen doors. The fire set up by arsonists at Hennessy Road was very fierce at one point, reaching the height of overbridge and posing serious danger to residents nearby.
