Hong Kong police officer acted professionally to fatally shoot armed man, force says
‘It was a critical situation. The man was holding weapons in both hands as he advanced towards our colleagues,’ superintendent says
Hong Kong police have said an officer who shot dead a knife-wielding man acted professionally, as the situation was so serious that he was left with “no choice” but to open fire.
Authorities said on Monday the 38-year-old man, who had a history of mental illness and was an outpatient of Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital, received an injection of antipsychotic medication last Friday.
His wife called police on Sunday night, two days later, saying his mental health had deteriorated and he had attacked her and his elderly mother in the family’s rooftop flat in North Point.
A spokeswoman for the Chai Wan hospital said medical staff assessed his condition as “stable” when he received the injection last week, and his next consultation was scheduled for next month.
Superintendent Sin Kwok-ming of the Hong Kong Island regional crime unit said investigations showed the man, surnamed Li, showed signs of having recently had a mental illness relapse.
Sin said Li attacked his 68-year-old mother in the Kam Ping Street flat, leaving her with head injuries and a fractured hand.
The mother managed to escape and was later taken to hospital. Li’s wife, 41, and two tenants locked themselves in rooms inside the two-storey rooftop flats of their subdivided home.
