Nepali gang fight cause of Yuen Long murder
A long-standing dispute between two Nepali gangs sparked a fight on Sunday that led to the death of a youth in Yuen Long, police said on Tuesday.
The two rival gangs, who have connections with the Wo Shing Wo triad, have attacked each other and fought in the streets several times over the past few months, an officer said.
“One of the gangs is active in Nam Pin Wai, where they meet and drink on a basketball court at night. The other usually gathers in Hop Yick Road,” he said.
Police are investigating whether the fight was prompted by one of the gangs trying to extend its influence in the district.
The Hop Yick Road gang was attacked about a week before Sunday’s fight, in which the 19-year-old Nepalese man was stabbed to death.
The victim, a restaurant worker, was drinking and chatting with about 10 friends on the basketball court at about 10pm on Sunday, when more than 20 men arrived and attacked them with knives, iron bars and wooden rods, police said.
Suffering stab wounds to his neck and chest, he was found lying unconscious at the scene after the others escaped, and was later declared dead in hospital.
Two Nepalese men in their 20s, suspected of being involved in the brawl, went to Pok Oi Hospital for treatment on the same night. Police arrested them and three other Nepali men on Monday night.
Police escorted one of the suspects, hooded and handcuffed, to his home in Kau Yuk Road, Yuen Long, for a search at about 4pm yesterday. He was later taken back to Yuen Long police station.
Closed-circuit television footage from nearby buildings and the Yuen Long MTR station helped police identify the suspects, another officer said.
The five were being held for questioning last night, as police continued their search for about 20 other men. Investigators appealed for witnesses to contact them on 3661 3348.
Police figures show there were 15 homicide reports in the first six months of this year, up from seven in the same period last year.
