A knife-wielding hostage situation occurred in Tuen Mun, Hong Kong, on the 15th, in which a Vietnamese man was shot dead by police who fired two shots. On the morning of the 16th, the deceased's mother, accompanied by relatives and friends, arrived at the mortuary to handle the identification procedures. The mother and a female relative hugged each other and cried, questioning during the process why officers had to fire two shots, which killed her son. By around 11 a.m., after the procedures were completed, the mother left in tears.
According to ON.CC, at about 7 p.m. on the 15th, a Vietnamese man born in Hong Kong took a beef knife from a supermarket food stall at Tuen Mun Town Plaza without permission, and then wandered around with the knife, scaring people nearby who fled in panic. Police arrived after receiving a report and confronted the suspect. Officers tried to subdue him with pepper spray guns, but were unsuccessful. The Vietnamese man then went to the ground floor of the mall and held a woman hostage with the knife. As the situation was critical, police fired two shots at him, resulting in the suspect falling unconscious from gunshot wounds and being sent to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The female passerby who was held hostage suffered abrasions to her hands and feet, and was discharged from hospital after treatment.
The deceased had triad background
Police later found a packet of suspected dangerous drugs and a telescopic baton in the deceased's bag. Hospital doctors found a bullet in the body, and officers found a bullet hole in the exterior wall of a shop and two shell casings on the ground during the crime scene investigation. Preliminary investigation showed the deceased was a 34-year-old Vietnamese man with a Hong Kong identity card and had triad affiliations. After reviewing a large amount of CCTV footage, police found no accomplices and did not rule out the possibility that the suspect was under the influence of drugs during the crime.
Police: Opened fire as there was no other choice
According to police, the deceased had a drug-related criminal record and was shot in the chest and right shoulder. Law enforcement officials stated that in order to save the woman being held hostage, they had no choice but to open fire.