Hong Kong bus driver who swerved double-decker at police guilty of careless driving, could lose licence
- Cheung Ho-yin could lose licence after magistrate opts not to impose fine over incident in Yau Ma Tei in September last year
- Driver also found guilty of same offence after steering bus with elbow two hours before clash with police
A bus driver arrested for honking his horn at police during an anti-government protest last year may face a driving ban, after he was convicted of careless driving for swerving a double-decker towards officers while raising a middle finger.
In Tuesday’s verdict at Kowloon City Court, Principal Magistrate Ada Yim Shun-yee refused to impose a fine on Cheung Ho-yin, saying the defendant had endangered passengers and other road users when he committed the offence on September 6.
Yim also found the 37-year-old guilty of an additional count of the same offence after ruling he had controlled his wheel improperly while driving the same bus earlier that day.
She adjourned sentencing to June 8 pending assessment reports on the defendant’s suitability for probation or community service order, adding she might suspend his driving licence.
The New World First Bus employee was detained after steering a route 970 bus in Yau Ma Tei that afternoon, when police cordoned off parts of Nathan Road as demonstrators assembled there to protest against the national security law and the adjournment of the Legislative Council elections.
Monday’s trial heard that when Cheung passed through the junction of Nathan Road and Public Square Street at 4.20pm, he sounded his horn for three seconds and pointed a middle finger at officers to vent his frustration at the decision to close off two of three southbound lanes of the carriageway.
