Mainland Chinese taxi driver jailed for two weeks for defacing US consulate in Hong Kong

HONG KONG, Aug 30, 2019, SCMP. A mainland Chinese taxi driver was jailed for two weeks on Thursday for defacing the US consulate general in Hong Kong, the second time this month the diplomatic mission had been vandalised, reported the South China Morning Post.

The man, 36-year-old Xie Yongqiu, splashed black ink on the United States coat of arms on the front gate of the consulate and on seven sign boards on Tuesday evening after entering the city the same day.
He was stopped by a security guard before he could affix a placard to the gate bearing the words in handwritten Chinese “Crazy British and American politicians, stop interfering in Hong Kong matters”.

When arrested, he admitted committing the offence, saying he did it “because the US meddled in Hong Kong affairs and [I] hate the US very much”.

Xie, who lives in Jiangmen, Guangdong province, pleaded guilty to one count of criminal damage at Eastern Magistrates’ Court.

Principal Magistrate Bina Chainrai found no mitigating factors in the case other than the driver’s guilty plea. She found a considerable degree of premeditation as Xie had bought a bottle of black ink immediately after his arrival in the city.

The cost of repairing the damage had yet to be ascertained, the court heard.