Rocket Men: 3 arrested for setting off fireworks in Tin Shui Wai

Police arrested two men for setting off fireworks near Tin Shui Wai Hospital last night. Screengrab via Facebook video/Chow Tak Kwai.
Police arrested two men for setting off fireworks near Tin Shui Wai Hospital last night. Screengrab via Facebook video/Chow Tak Kwai.

Residents in the Tin Shui Wai area could have been forgiven for thinking Chinese New Year had arrived a week early after the neighborhood was treated to an impromptu — and illegal — fireworks display last night.

Officers took action after being informed of the fireworks, which were captured in a 16-second video that was posted to a Facebook group for viral and amusing content last night. Bottle rockets these were not.

According to HK01, when police arrived at the scene at around 8pm, they found two spent cartons of fireworks near Tin Shui Wai Hospital.

After checking CCTV cameras and dash cams around the area, police identified a suspicious vehicle that was traced to an apartment unit in the village of Pak Sha Tsuen in Yuen Long, where they arrested a 65-year-old man surnamed Tam.

When quizzed about the suspicious vehicle, Tam said that the car belonged to his 33-year-old son, who subsequently told the police that he lent the vehicle to his friend, a 29-year-old surnamed Wong.

All three men were taken into custody between 1:30am and 2am this morning on suspicion of illegally discharging fireworks under the Dangerous Goods Ordinance, and have been detained for further questioning. Police are now looking into where the fireworks were purchased.

Illegal possession of fireworks is an offense that carries a maximum penalty of a HK$25,000 (about US$3,190) fine and six months in jail.

Discharging fireworks in a public place has been illegal in Hong Kong for decades, with authorities citing health and safety concerns given that most Hongkongers live in densely packed areas. The annual New Year’s Eve, Chinese New Year and National Day firework displays are the only authorised fireworks displays in the city.

Authorities typically ramp up searches for fireworks in the lead-up to Chinese New Year, when fireworks and firecrackers are traditionally set off to scare away evil spirits and bring good luck.

Last week, authorities seized more than a tonne of illegal fireworks valued at HK$2 million (about US$255,000) from a container storage yard in Lok Ma Chau. The fireworks were expected to be sold to villagers in the New Territories ahead of Chinese New Year.

Experts said the fireworks contained about 600 kilograms of gunpowder, and if set alight, could have decimated the yard and damaged the surrounding area.

The Standard reports that a 62-year-old yard manager was arrested, but was later released on bail.



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