Hong Kong student in deadly car park fall went to building to watch nearby protest, inquest hears
- Investigators revealed conversations Alex Chow had with online users before his death, showing he wanted to ‘give something to others’ but he did not elaborate
- Circumstances surrounding death still a mystery as no clear footage of incident is available
A university student in Hong Kong who suffered fatal injuries in a car park fall last year had gone to the building to watch an anti-government protest nearby, an inquest heard on Tuesday.
Investigators revealed part of the conversations between Alex Chow Tsz-lok and others on social media early on November 4, 2019, moments before he was found with severe head injuries at a multistorey car park in Tseung Kwan O.
Conversation records also showed the 22-year-old Hong Kong University of Science and Technology student had left for the car park to “give something to others”, but he did not elaborate.
Student who died after car park fall may have ‘jumped from height by mistake’
The Coroner’s Court was earlier told Chow had roamed the Sheung Tak Estate car park while using his smartphone between 12.39am and 1am. During that period, police attempted to disperse protesters at a nearby junction by firing tear gas and other anti-riot weapons.
He was believed to have fallen four metres (13 feet) from the car park’s third floor at about 1.01am, but it remains unclear how he fell as no security camera was able to fully capture the incident. He died in hospital four days later.
Digital data taken from Chow’s iPad revealed the student was earlier that night chatting with a number of people via Telegram, a messaging app popular among protesters.
The court heard Chow sent a message in a group of six users at 12.41am, saying police fired tear gas at the car park. A member with the username “Tsz Kit” asked: “Will you be able to return [to your home]?”
“[I’m] at the car park just to watch the show. [I] brought nothing,” Chow wrote.
Chow’s last message came eight minutes later, where he said: “[I] also went down to give something to others.” Tsz Kit asked Chow whether he was safe at 1.12am, but Chow did not respond.
In another conversation among a group of eight users, Chow appeared to have discussed the protest with fellow members before he left home at 11.54pm. He last sent a picture to the group at 12.46am, showing police officers cordoning off a road opposite the car park.
Student in deadly car park fall near protest site ‘unlikely to have lost balance’
Constable Chau Cho-yiu, of police’s Cyber Security and Technology Crime Bureau, testified he discovered the login credentials of Chow’s iPad after inspecting browser records in the student’s desktop computer, which was not password-protected.
But the officer said he was unable to retrieve the contents of Chow’s iPhone, which he used to communicate with others that night. He said the device was apparently disabled after multiple failed attempts to unlock it, leaving resetting the phone as the only option to open it.
Another officer, Lam Chi-keung, said investigators were also unable to identify the other Telegram users involved, as they could not contact them via Chow’s iPad due to concerns over data loss should the device be connected to the internet.
Coroner Ko Wai-hung urged those who communicated with Chow on Telegram that night to come forward and provide information to the inquiry. The inquest continues on Wednesday.
