Two Hong Kong men accused of conspiring to incite people to riot during the 2019 protests and unrest have had their case moved to a higher court, where they face a maximum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment.

Ng Tsz-lok, who is unemployed, and photographer Chan Wai-leong appeared at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts on Thursday.

The two men have been remanded since they were charged in October over their alleged role in the anti-extradition protests six years ago. Prosecutors have accused them of manufacturing and providing weapons to protesters.

The pair have been charged with conspiring to incite others to take part in a riot, with the date of the offence being October 22 to 23, 2019.

Ng was among a group of defendants acquitted by a High Court jury in September of alleged involvement in three bomb plots in places including a hospital and a car park between November 2019 and March 2020.

With the completion of handover procedures, Magistrate Victor So announced on Thursday the transfer of the case to the District Court.

The maximum penalty at the District Court is seven years’ imprisonment. At the magistrates’ court, the maximum penalty is two years, or three years when a defendant is convicted of more than one offence.

The case will be heard at the District Court on June 2 for the pair to confirm whether they will plead guilty or not guilty, So said.

Ng also faced an additional charge of “incitement to take part in a riot” on November 14, 2019. The prosecution said on Thursday it had changed the charge to “conspiracy to incite others to take part in a riot” and added an additional day – November 15, 2019 – to the offence.

The details of the amended charge specified that the target of Ng’s incitement was an unknown individual and somebody by the name of Lee Tsz-ying – transliterated from Cantonese, as read out in court by the prosecution.

The prosecution also added a new charge for Ng, accusing him of inciting others to riot on different dates, between October 19 and November 8, 2019.

Protests erupted in June 2019 over a since-axed extradition bill. They escalated into sometimes violent displays of dissent against police behaviour, amid calls for democracy and anger over Beijing’s encroachment. Demonstrators demanded an independent probe into police conduct, amnesty for those arrested and a halt to the characterisation of protests as “riots.”

The movement died down in 2020 amid the Covid-19 pandemic and a national security law imposed by Beijing authorities in June that year.

Three people who were arrested by national security police over alleged illegal weapons training last December have been charged with conspiracy to commit subversion.

Students Wong Kit-lun, 20, and Tang Ngai-pok, 23, as well as waiter Chan Hiu-chun, 23, appeared at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts on Thursday.

They are among a group of 10 people arrested in December for alleged “unlawful drilling” – an offence under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.

They stood in the defendant dock beside Gallian Pang and Lee Chun-sum, who were charged with the same offence of conspiring to subvert state power – an offence under the Beijing-imposed national security law – a week after the arrests. At the time they were charged in December, both Pang and Lee were security guards aged 24 and 25 respectively.

On Thursday, the prosecution accused Wong, Tang and Chan of conspiring with Pang, Lee and “other persons unknown between November 1, 2024 to December 11, 2025 to organise, plan, commit or participate in acts to subvert the state power.”

Wong faced an additional charge of possession of child pornography, an offence under the Prevention of Child Pornography Ordinance.

The prosecution also announced that it was charging Lee for allegedly possessing explosives and radio communications apparatus without a licence.

Possession of explosives is punishable by a maximum of 14 years’ imprisonment, while possession of radio communications apparatus without a licence is punishable by up to two years’ imprisonment.

In a statement published on Thursday, the government said the December arrests were made after investigation revealed a “syndicate” that “conducted firearms drills, knife techniques, and martial arts combat in a unit of an industrial building in Kowloon.”

Their aim was to subvert state power by means or threat of force, “i.e., to overthrow [Hong Kong’s] organs of power,” the government said.

The arrests marked the first time authorities had invoked the unlawful drilling offence.

The remaining arrestees in the case who were not charged have been released on bail. They are required to report to the police in mid-June, the statement added.

Conspiring to commit subversion, an offence under the national security law, is punishable by up to life imprisonment in Hong Kong.

Joshua Wong’s national security case has been transferred to a higher court, where the pro-democracy activist faces up to life imprisonment, following the conclusion of committal proceedings.

Wong appeared at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts on Thursday morning to face a charge of conspiring to commit foreign collusion, a crime under the Beijing-imposed national security law.

He was arrested in June last year while in jail. Wong is currently serving a four-year-and-eight-month jail sentence for his involvement in another national security case relating to election primaries in 2020, in which he pleaded guilty.

In the present case, the 29-year-old stands accused of conspiring with self-exiled activist Nathan Law and “other persons unknown” between July 1 and November 23, 2020, to request foreign countries, organisations, or individuals based overseas to impose sanctions, blockades or engage in other hostile activities against Hong Kong or China.

Law, who now lives in the UK, and Wong, along with other former student activists, co-founded pro-democracy political party Demosisto, which was disbanded hours after China’s legislature passed the national security law on June 30, 2020.

Magistrate Victor So said in August last year that Wong’s case would be transferred from the magistrate’s court to the High Court, where the maximum penalty is life imprisonment. At the magistrate’s court, the maximum penalty is two years, or three years when a defendant faces more than one offence.

Since then, Wong has appeared at a number of hearings related to the committal of the case to the High Court.

Under court reporting laws, media reports relating to procedures involving the transfer of cases from the magistrate’s court to the High Court are severely restricted.

Reports cannot publicise the contents of the procedures, and can only describe information such as the names of defendants, judges and lawyers, and information on the charges.

Wong has been remanded since November 2020, when he was detained in an unauthorised assembly case linked to the anti-extradition protests and unrest in 2019.

Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong’s mini-constitution in June 2020 following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts – broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. 

The move gave police sweeping new powers and led to hundreds of arrests amid new legal precedents, while dozens of civil society groups disappeared. The authorities say it restored stability and peace to the city, rejecting criticism from trade partners, the UN and NGOs.