Hong Kong protests: convicted felon who took part in clashes near Polytechnic University in 2019 jailed for rioting for second time in five years

Lin Yun-faat sentenced to 4 years behind bars for his part in incident near university during civil unrest

The customer service operator was previously jailed for rioting over violent clashes with police in Mong Kok in 2016

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Police and protesters clash in Tsim Sha Tsui on November 18, 2019. Photo: Winson Wong

Published: 4:30pm, 31 Aug 2021Updated: 11:22pm, 31 Aug 2021

A convicted felon has been jailed for rioting for the second time in five years after being found guilty of taking part in violent clashes around Polytechnic University in 2019.

Customer service operator Lin Yun-faat, 31, was convicted on Tuesday of rioting and using a facial covering at an unlawful assembly near the junction of Nathan Road and Waterloo Road in Yau Ma Tei on November 18, after the District Court found he had strengthened the momentum of the rioting crowd by his presence.

Three of his co-defendants, student Loo Jun-kun, 23, construction site surveyor Wong San-man, 27, and lighting technician Cheng Shun-tat, 40, were acquitted.

Lin had only been out of jail for a matter of months when one of the most violent incidents of the anti-government protests took place, having served three years for rioting in Mong Kok in February 2016, when more than 100 police officers were injured after a hawker-control operation went wrong.

Protesters and police clash on a street during demonstrations in Mong Kok, on February 9, 2016. Photo: AFP

In mitigation, defence counsel Thomas Iu Poon-shing said Lin did not play a leadership role, carry any offensive weapons, or throw any bricks or petrol bombs in the present case.

Judge Josiah Lam Wai-kuen said the essence of the charges of unlawful assembly and rioting lay in the participants acting in large numbers and using those numbers to achieve a common purpose.