It was quite the scene.
A senior citizen peddling what many complained was straight-up snake oil in Sham Shui Po was arrested on Sunday after scuffling with staff from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD).
According to Apple Daily, the 76-year-old hawker surnamed Lee, had been the subject of several complaints for his bold assertions on the restorative powers of his wares
His oils, he claimed, could cure rheumatism and bone pain.
The FEHD, which, as Coconuts HK reported recently, has been cracking down on unlicensed vendors, went to check things out.
As onlookers gathered at about 4pm, a showdown unfolded, with the salesman refusing to take his miracle oils and leave.
The situation escalated when the hawker proceeded to push to the ground one of the FEHD hawker management team to the ground, possibly causing a bit of bone pain that his oils may or may not have helped.
The downed staff member was taken to the Caritas Medical Centre for treatment.
The hawker now faces a problem with no easy cure: the consequences of striking a public official.
