Hong Kong police arrested 10 people late Monday, who were allegedly plotting to make bombs with explosives days ahead of this week's Legislative Council vote on a universal suffrage package.
The suspects, including six men and four women aged between 21 and 58, were all Hong Kong residents, according to Hong Kong Police Force. Some of the suspects claimed they were members of a local radical group, but the police said an investigation was still underway.
The police found maps marking locations in downtown Wan Chai and Admiralty, and seized several kilograms of suspected solid explosives and 5 liters of liquid explosives at a "bomb factory" in Sai Kung, New Territory. "The group might have wanted to do something on those particular locations," said Au Chin-chau, an acting chief superintendent for the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau.
The police seized at one suspect's home explosives which were confirmed to be ingredients for triacetone triperoxide or TATP, a highly explosive substance that was used in the 2005 London bombings. The search in Ho Chung village, Sai Kung, Monday night also found weapons, including detonators and air guns.
Officer Au said two of the arrested were planning to detonate a device at the facility on Sunday. There was also a plan to make a smoke bomb. All the suspects were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to manufacture explosives, an offense that carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, according to Au.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said on Tuesday that he would not comment on the case, but reiterated that Hong Kong people should express their demands in a legal way and Hong Kong should not tolerate any violation of law.
He also said that the government's constitutional development plan is the most possible opportunity for 5 million Hong Kong voters to have a universal suffrage. He hoped legislators reconsider the plan and support it in this week's Legislative Council vote.
