Hong Kong offers bounties for five activists accused of security crimes

HONG KONG: Hong Kong police offered HK$1 million bounties on Thursday for information leading to the capture of five overseas activists accused of national security crimes, adding they would be pursued “till the end”.

All five are living abroad after Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the financial hub in 2020 to quash dissent after massive pro-democracy protests. Thursday´s bounties were the second batch of hefty rewards offered by Hong Kong police pursuing fugitives accused of national security crimes.

Chief Superintendent Steve Li Kwai-wah said the five people were suspected of incitement to secession, incitement to subversion, and foreign collusion -- crimes that can carry sentences of up to life in prison. “All of them, who have already fled overseas, have continued to commit offences under the national security law that seriously endanger national security,” Li told a news conference.

He said they “betrayed their country, betrayed Hong Kong, disregarded the interests of Hong Kong people, and continue to endanger national security even when abroad”. Among them was prominent activist Simon Cheng, who is currently in Britain and is the founder of the civil society group Hongkongers in Britain.