A needle was found planted in a seat on a Kowloon Motors Bus double decker Thursday night, prompting a police investigation.
The incident occurred on a bus driving the 59X route towards Mong Kok east terminal, according to police. A passenger told the driver that she found the needle in a seat on the upper deck of the bus.
Later, the driver drove the bus back to the depot in Lai Chi Kok, where he filed a police report. Officers arrived at the scene and found a 3 cm long sewing needle.
Nobody was hurt, and the incident has been classified as a property damage case.
It’s not the first time that sharp objects have been stuck into bus seats. In 2019, a man admitted to planting needles in bus seats the year before to hurt passengers because he drivers were not stopping at designated bus stops, inconveniencing his commute. He was sentenced to two years in prison.
Read more: Police launch probe after needles planted in bus seats
The bizarre crime appeared to trigger a string of copycat incidents, with no less than a dozen cases across multiple bus routes reported since then. The sharp objects have included sewing needles, acupuncture needles and pushpins.
Just last month, a passenger on a bus traveling on the 13M route discovered a screw, around 8 cm long, lodged into a seat. The bus was near Sau Mau Ping Estate in Kwun Tong when the passenger found the screw, according to Ming Pao.
