A Hong Kong man accused of adding urine to bottled soft drinks has been denied bail pending his next court appearance.
Wearing a dark grey T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan “Enjoy Coca-Cola,” defendant Lo Kim-ngai appeared at Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday morning to face the charge of “administering poison or other destructive or noxious thing with intent to injure.”
According to the charge sheet, Lo, 63, allegedly administered a toxic substance – namely urine – with the intent to harm, aggrieve, or annoy others on August 6 at a Wellcome supermarket branch in Nam Cheong Place.
The maximum penalty for the offence is three years in prison.
Magistrate Tsang Hing-tung rejected Lo’s bail application and ordered him to remain in custody until his next court mention on October 21.
Lo retains the right to challenge his bail status within eight days.
He was arrested on Saturday after a nine-year-old boy drank a suspected contaminated drink and felt unwell.
Police said on Monday they had received reports in late July of suspected urine contamination in Coca-Cola and 7Up drinks found in supermarkets in Sham Shui Po, Mong Kok, and Wan Chai over the past year.
A preliminary investigation suggested that Lo had an “unpleasant” encounter with supermarket staff and sought revenge.
It is unclear which other supermarkets were affected.
