An elderly man accused of starting a fire on an MTR train told police he was responsible for the blaze because he wanted to become a media star, the Court of First Instance heard yesterday.
Yim Kam-chung, 68, said in a videotaped interview shown to the jury that, as a figure in the news, he would have the opportunity to draw public attention to what he called the government's persecution of him. Yim told police when arrested that he was the arsonist.
'Since the government confiscated six of my vehicles, I decided to cause a tragedy at the Admiralty MTR station,' he said at the time.
'Because my name is Yim Kam-chung [the Chinese characters of the name Kam-chung mean Admiralty], I picked Admiralty MTR station,' he added.
Yim is accused of starting a fire on January 5 last year, shortly after the train left Tsim Sha Tsui for Admiralty. He has pleaded not guilty to arson, and is representing himself.
The prosecution said no one was injured in the blaze, which was put out at Admiralty station.
