After seeking legal advice, watchdog performs U-turn and agrees complaint was substantiated
CHRISTY.LEUNG@SCMP.COM
PUBLISHED : Tuesday, 15 December, 2015, 12:05am
UPDATED : Tuesday, 15 December, 2015, 10:35am
Franklin Chu at the Mong Kok protest. Photo: SCMP Pictures
The row over a high-profile accusation of assault against a senior police officer during an Occupy protest took a new twist yesterday.
The force conceded it was an “assault” case and reported to its watchdog that the complaint was “substantiated”. The U-turn by the Complaints Against Police Office (Capo) came after it sought legal advice from the Department of Justice.
In a statement the police force said Capo had submitted a revised report to the Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC) – an independent watchdog of the force – and agreed to revise its conclusion that the complaint was “not substantiated”.
The force said Capo would seek more legal advice and had no further comment.
A police source said Capo had earlier sought legal advice about civil litigation, and it would seek further advice from the Department of Justice on whether any criminal offence was involved and if prosecution should follow.
The saga traced back to November 26 last year when superintendent Franklin Chu King-wai, now retired, was accused of hitting passer-by Osman Cheng Chung-hang with his baton during the protest in Mong Kok.
Chu was a divisional commander for Sha Tin but was sent to deal with protesters in Mong Kok. Cheng claimed Chu assaulted him and took the case to Capo, which cleared Chu of any wrongdoing, saying the complaint was not substantiated. It sparked a public outcry.
The IPCC voted in June in favour of substantiating Chu’s assult case but the verdict was rejected by Capo. The case was then sent back to the IPCC. The watchdog upheld its decision. The force sought legal advice from the Department of Justice in August.
The IPCC said yesterday it had still not received a reply from Capo. Some IPCC members contacted by thePost said they acknowledged the reply from Capo, but refused to comment.
“Very often we hold different views from the police. But it is not our duty to make them think like us,” said one member, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
IPCC chairman Larry Kwok Lam-kwong said last week that if Capo maintained its decision on Chu, he would refer the case to the chief executive.
Additional reporting by Ng Kang-chung
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1891235/police-officer-did-commit-assault-during-occupy-protest
