Two Courts Receive Suspicious Letters: Hong Kong Police Deploy Bomb Disposal, Dozens Of People Evacuated

JAKARTA - Bomb disposal officers were deployed to two courthouses in Hong Kong after a suspicious letter addressed to a judge was received, triggering a second evacuation in less than a week, following the discovery of an envelope filled with white powder.

More than 30 people were evacuated from West Kowloon Court on Tung Chau Road in Sham Shui Po, after a staff member sounded the alarm at 11:17 a.m. local time. A police spokesman said a bomb disposal squad was sent to examine the letter. No one got hurt.

At 11.49am local time, a bomb disposal squad was dispatched to examine other suspicious papers at the Sha Tin Court on Yi Ching Lane in Sha Tin. The spokesman said no evacuation was needed following the report.

A police source said the letter received at West Kowloon Court contained white powder and was addressed to Judge Kathie Cheung Kit-yee, who also received a threatening letter last Thursday.

"In the letter, there was a small envelope containing white powder," the source said, referring to the letter received on Tuesday which also contained an offensive wording message, citing the Nov. 16 SCMP.

The source also said the letter sent to the Sha Tin Court was addressed to Judge Pang Leung-ting. Hong Kong authorities are examining the contents of the letter.

"Due to an emergency incident, the West Kowloon Judicial Court Registry and Accounts Office, Registry Office, Accountant Office and Sha Tin Magistrates Court Bailiff Office have been closed until further notice," the court said in a statement.

"The court proceedings and other court matters of the courts of the two judges will not be affected," the court added.

In a subsequent statement, the court said facilities affected by the emergency incident reopened at 2:30 p.m. local time.

Last Thursday, a threatening letter containing a highly corrosive substance was sent to the West Kowloon Court. Judge Cheung to whom the recent letter was addressed jailed five students for their role in major clashes during the 2019 anti-government protests.

The powder found in the letter was later confirmed to be two grams of caustic soda, which was wrapped in aluminum foil.