Hong Kong Indigenous convenor Ray Wong in court charged with rioting
Wong, 22, is granted bail but must surrender his passport and home return permit, obey a curfew and report to police three times a week
Activist Ray Wong Toi-yeung, convenor of the radical localist group accused of instigating the Mong Kok riot, was freed on bail yesterday after appearing in Kowloon City Court to face a charge of rioting.
Wong, 22, a freelance interior decorator, was not required to enter a plea before chief magistrate Clement Lee Hing-nin as he sat surrounded by seven police officers in the dock.
Assistant director of public prosecutions Ned Lai Ka-yee opposed Wong’s bail application as he accused the young activist of taking part in the riot on February 8 and 9, along with other suspects.
In rejecting the request by the prosecution, the chief magistrate said: “My view is that stringent bail conditions can alleviate the risk of absconding.”
Wong was released on HK$100,000 cash bail and a HK$100,000 cash surety from his mother, on the condition that he resides at a reported address, remains in Hong Kong and refrains from entering parts of Mong Kok except while on a mode of transportation.
He was also required to surrender his passport and home return permit within 48 hours of his release from custody, obey a curfew from midnight to 6am and report to Tseung Kwan O police station three times a week.
Lee said: “All these conditions are recorded in the bail sheet, with a copy that will be given to you. Is that clear?”
“Yes,” Wong replied through an interpreter during the hearing, which was conducted in English.
Lee also reminded Wong’s mother, who was sworn in to serve as his surety, to ensure Wong met the bail conditions or she would risk the confiscation of the HK$100,000 surety.
Wong’s lawyer, senior counsel Nigel Kat, revealed that “a reputable member of society”, whose identity was not mentioned in the open court hearing, was also willing to pay HK$100,000 as a cash surety.
Wong’s case will return to the same court on March 22, pending police investigations and legal advice from the Department of Justice.
It brings the number charged in connection with the riot to 46, with all but one facing one count of rioting. Wong’s bail application was the only one opposed by the prosecution.
Dozens of Wong’s supporters queued up outside the court building before the afternoon hearing, and then filled he seats inside.
Among them were Wong’s mother, his group’s spokesman, Edward Leung Tin-kei, who was also charged with rioting earlier this month, and founder of the now-defunct political group, Student Front, Alvin Cheng Kam-mun.
Anyone found guilty of rioting faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.