HONG KONG - Tsang Kin-shing, locally known as the "Bull", a member of the radical opposition group League of Social Democrats (LSD), has been implicated in a plot to use an airborne drone to disrupt the visit of Zhang Dejiang, the most senior central government official to visit Hong Kong since 2012.
Tsang is reported to have confessed on Sunday that it was he who commissioned a Hong Kong man, identified only by the surname Guo, to buy a drone to be used to create a nuisance during Zhang’s three-day visit this week, as well as at future protests.
Guo, 56, told police he had been hired by a man with the surname Tsang, a member of LSD, to buy the drone. Tsang at first denied it was he who had arranged the scheme.
Five people were arrested in the plot by Shenzhen police on May 6. Two, including Guo were Hong Kong residents, Xinhua reported.
Zhang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, will attend a Belt and Road Summit sponsored by the HKSAR government on Wednesday. High-level guests from overseas are expected to be in attendance.
He will also attend a dinner reception at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center on Wednesday evening, to which some 500 local luminaries, including opposition political members have been invited.
The plan to disrupt Zhang’s events came as local police ramped up security provisions for the three-day visit which starts tomorrow. Arterial traffic near the convention center will be closed, along Harbour Road and Convention Avenue, as precautions against radical disruptions and acts of terrorism.
Shenzhen police also revealed Guo had confessed that he had supported several opposition figures in Hong Kong over an extended period. Guo has previous arrests for possession of counterfeit identity cards and fraud. The other Hong Kong resident arrested, a 48-year-old man, is reportedly a triad member involved in criminal activities including gambling and theft.
The case came to light when Shenzhen police became aware of an ongoing operation selling counterfeit Hong Kong identity cards used for credit card scams, telephone fraud, money laundering and other illegal activities. Police also reported seizing equipments used in the commission of crimes.
