Ng Wai-nam, 58, denied accusations from the prosecution that he had used a wooden stick to strike a man on his helmet, causing him to fall down. He said the man who fell is only grabbing his helmet for no reason.

Ng said he had only hit water barriers nearby with the stick to make loud noises to scare off the crowd - which he thought were planning to demolish an ancestral hall. However, he denied that he had use violence to threaten the crowd.

He also added that the stick was only in his possession after he snatched it from a black-shirted man.

Prosecutors said video footage showed the black-shirted man wasn’t carrying a stick at all, and Ng was actually given the stick by another man wearing a checked shirt, RTHK reports.

Ng is among six men who deny a charge of rioting, while two others have pleaded guilty.

The attack on July 21, 2019, left dozens of people in hospital. Police did not turn up during the rampage, even though the force admitted it was inundated with calls for help, RTHK reports.