Hong Kong protests: security chief rejects accusation police have lied on stand in court cases tied to unrest

John Lee’s grilling at Legco follows recent protester acquittals in which officers were accused of unreliable testimony

But instances of ‘unclear memory’ are no proof that law has been breached, he tells lawmakers

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Opposition lawmakers grilled Hong Kong security chief John Lee over a string of protest-related cases in which judges accused police of unreliable testimony. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Published: 5:16pm, 4 Nov 2020Updated: 11:44pm, 4 Nov 2020

Hong Kong’s security chief rejected misconduct allegations against the city’s police force on Wednesday, following several recent instances in which courts have questioned the testimony of officers in cases tied to last year’s anti-government protests.

Secretary for Security John Lee Ka-chiu’s dismissal of the claims came as he was grilled by opposition lawmakers at the Legislative Council over his officers’ credibility after a number of acquittals, on the same day a magistrate said an officer “did not tell the truth in court”.

Magistrate Jocelyn Leung cleared mechanic Ian Wong on Wednesday of assaulting Station Sergeant Andrew Cheung, after video evidence showed it was the officer who had bumped into the defendant.

“Magistrates have frequently criticised police witnesses for telling lies after reviewing a massive amount of evidence. Why has there only been disciplinary action against two officers in the past five years?” asked lawmaker Jeremy Tam Man-ho of the opposition Civic Party.

John Lee defended the police force against accusations officers had been untruthful when acting as prosecution witnesses. Photo: Dickson Lee

Lee responded that a variety of innocent factors could lead a judge to reject an officer’s testimony.

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