HONG KONG: The man accused in the December 12 acid attack on pedestrians in Causeway Bay appeared briefly in Eastern Magistrates court Friday, entered no plea and was remanded in custody for two weeks for psychiatric evaluation.

Lo Ching-ho, 23, is accused of tossing a bottle of corrosive fluid from an elevated position above Lockhart Road with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

The area adjacent to the Sogo Department Store was crowded with late night shoppers and people celebrating Hong Kong's Football Gold Medal victory earlier in the day at the East Asian Game. Police say a bottle of corrosive liquid smashed onto the pavement in front of a sporting goods store.

One woman injured in the attack suffered burns over 20 percent of her body, including burns that covered her face and chest. Her male companion also suffered serious injuries. The couple and four other women required to be taken to hospital for treatment.

Lo was arrested Wednesday night, following intense police scrutiny of security videos in the neighborhood. Some cameras caught a man carrying a black paper bag, similar to a bag that was found containing a bottle of corrosive liquid on the night of the attack. Police also seized evidence from Lo's residence Wednesday, at the time he was taken into custody.

Investigators said they have established no motive for the Causeway Bay attack.

Police say the December 12 attack appears to have been a copycat crime, unrelated to earlier attacks that began December 13, 2008. Two of the incidents took place in Mong Kok, both on Saturday night. A third happened in Sham Shui Po. Collectively more than 100 people have been injured in the series of attacks, in which corrosive liquids were indiscriminately dropped onto pedestrian areas below.

China Daily

(HK Edition 01/16/2010 page1)