Man, 20, arrested over Instagram bomb hoax and Disneyland gun comments

Skip to content A 20-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of making a bomb hoax after police received a report last Thursday about a threat posted online. The man, a Hong Kong resident, was arrested on Friday in Kowloon City district, police said in a Saturday statement. Social media apps on a smartphone. Photo: Tracy Le Blanc/Pexels. Citing sources, local media – including Sing Tao Daily and Ming Pao – reported that the man was suspected of leaving a comment under an Instagram post about planting a bomb somewhere in the city. He was also suspected of leaving another comment on Instagram asking whether people could bring an automatic rifle into Disneyland, Sing Tao Daily reported. The police did not find any gunpowder, explosives, or political material at the arrestee’s residence, Ming Pao reported citing sources. The police also stepped up patrols at Hong Kong Disneyland, though nothing suspicious was reported. Hong Kong Police Force. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. The online comments had been deleted as of Sunday evening. “Police remind the public that under Section 28 of the Public Order Ordinance, anyone who makes a false report of a bomb is liable to a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment upon conviction,” the police statement read. The case is being investigated by Crime Investigation Team 3 of Lantau District. As of Sunday evening, the man was still being detained for further investigation. Safeguard press freedom; keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team Support HKFP | Policies & Ethics | Error/typo? | Contact | Newsletter | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps Make a one-off donation. Irene Chan is a reporter at Hong Kong Free Press and has an interest in covering political and social change. She previously worked at Initium Media as chief editor for Hong Kong news and was a community organiser at the Society for Community Organisation serving the underprivileged. She has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Fudan University and a master’s degree in social work from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Irene is the recipient of two Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) awards and three honourable mentions for her investigative, feature and video reporting. She also received a Human Rights Press Award for multimedia reporting and an honourable mention for feature writing. More by Irene Chan