Admissions made under duress, say men accused of attack on Kevin Lau
Lawyer for pair accused of hacking editor tells court their statements were made under duress
Two men who allegedly attacked former Ming Pao chief editor Kevin Lau Chun-to this morning appeared in Eastern Court, facing two charges.
Yip Kim-wah and Wong Chi-wah, both 37, "unlawfully and maliciously" wounded Lau at 55 Tai Hong street in Sai Wan Ho on February 26, the court heard. They were also alleged to have stolen a motorcycle in Fanling on February 13.
The pair, who claim to be plumbers, are jointly charged with one count of wounding with intent and another of theft. They did not enter plea or apply for bail this morning.
William Allan, lawyer representing both Yip and Wong, told the court his clients would object to caution statements and alleged admissions earlier made whilst placed in detention.
Allan said those statements and admissions were “not voluntarily given because of police threats, assaults, inducement and oppression” and the pair were not allowed to contact lawyers before the first videotaped interview.
Yip and Wong were arrested on the mainland and returned to Hong Kong on March 17 by the Guangdong public security department.
The court did not hear details of the alleged attack in today’s session.
Prosecutor Andrew Cheng asked for adjournment to allow time for the police to arrange an identification parade.
Principal Magistrate Bina Chainrai adjourned the case to March 25. Yip and Wong were ordered to be remanded in custody.
