Hong Kong protests: student accused of hurling bricks at police acquitted of riot charge

Lam Tsz-ho, 19, was found not guilty of rioting after the judge accepted a recording of events during October 1 protests that cast doubt on officers’ testimony

District Judge Sham Siu-man said the court was left with a single image of Lam which could not prove whether he took part in a riot or was just a passer-by

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Lam Tsz-ho leaves the District Court in Wan Chai on Tuesday. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

Published: 11:01pm, 2 Jun 2020Updated: 4:26am, 3 Jun 2020

A Hong Kong student accused of hurling bricks at police during last year’s October 1 National Day protest has been acquitted of a riot charge, the city’s first such verdict since anti-government demonstrations first rocked the city last June.

Lam Tsz-ho, 19, was found not guilty of rioting after District Judge Sham Siu-man accepted a recording of the events downloaded from instant messaging app Telegram, which cast doubt on the two officers’ testimony – the entirety of the prosecution’s case.

The judge also questioned why police failed to obtain surveillance camera footage from a nearby school and said he believed officers had not told the truth when asked to explain a head injury Lam sustained during his arrest.

“The court cannot accept the officers’ account of the events with ease,” Sham said.

Lam threw his head back and let out an audible sigh of relief upon hearing the verdict, while the public gallery erupted into applause.

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