Lucky escape for policeman in cutter attack
A policeman had a narrow escape during a routine identity check in Sham Shui Po when a man attacked him with a cutter early yesterday.
'The blade had not been pushed out from its handle before the attack,' a police spokesman said. 'The handle slid across the policeman's neck, leaving a long red mark.'
The spokesman said the attacker then grabbed the officer with one arm and punched his head repeatedly before another officer came to his assistance.
The attacker abandoned the cutter at the scene and fled on foot after assaulting the second officer.
Yesterday's attack happened as the two police officers were patrolling in Nam Cheong Street at about 2.30am. They found a man acting suspiciously and stopped him for an identity check.
'During the inquiry, the man suddenly drew out a cutter and attacked one of the two officers. The policeman had no chance to escape,' the spokesman said.
After the attacker fled, the two officers gave chase. The man was seen running along Tai Po Road, where he flagged down a taxi. Officers mounted a search but no one was arrested.
The attacker, whose hair is parted down the centre, is aged about 40 and 1.7 metres tall. He was wearing a white shirt and trousers.
The two officers were treated for minor injuries at Caritas Medical Centre. The younger of the two, who was attacked in the neck, was in stable condition last night.
His colleague was discharged after treatment. The injured officers are attached to the patrol sub-unit of Sham Shui Po police station.
A similar attack took place in 2005, when Constable Jacky Chu Chun-kwok suffered brain damage after he was stabbed in the neck in Cheung Sha Wan.
His condition was caused by blood loss after he was stabbed by Liu Chi-yung while patrolling in Po On Road on July 19. Chu was patrolling alone at the time.
Liu, 24, was jailed for 10 years in January 2007 after his sentence was increased by the Court of Appeal from the original six years.
