Scholarism activist Derek Lam Shun-hin has been acquitted of assaulting a security guard during students’ storming of Civic Square in September 2014.
The magistrate ruled on Thursday that the evidence given by the prosecution was inconsistent and did not accurately identify Lam as the attacker, reported Apple Daily. Lam is to receive compensation for legal costs, paid for by the prosecution.
The storming of Civic Square on September 26, 2014 was led by Scholarism and the Hong Kong Federation of Students. It sparked the pro-democracy Umbrella Movement which saw protest camps set up on major highways in Hong Kong for 79 days.
Lam was arrested earlier this month for alleged rioting during unrest in Mong Kok last week. Scholarism released a statement after the arrest saying that Lam was not involved in any violent behaviour that night. Scholarism activists Joshua Wong Chi-fung and Oscar Lai Lok-man have both asserted that authorities should not try to link Scholarism to the unrest.
