Hong Kong's 'Mother of Satan' Bomb Plot: How Police Stopped a Terror Campaign

Sentencing is due tomorrow for three masterminds behind a 2020 domestic terror plot that targeted a hospital and a border checkpoint. After a 159-day trial, a jury found Ho Cheuk-wai, Lee Ka-pan, and Cheung Ka-chun guilty of conspiracy to cause explosions. Court evidence revealed a chilling escalation of violence, including plans for a 20kg bomb in a residential area and the use of high-performance TATP explosives, a plot that was only stopped by timely police intervention.
 
This case was prosecuted under the Counter-Terrorism Ordinance, as it predated the Hong Kong National Security Law, and carries a sentence of up to 20 years. But the charges barely capture the reality: this was a coordinated attempt to carry out indiscriminate attacks on the public. Had police not uncovered their plan to detonate a massive homemade bomb in Tseung Kwan O, a massacre would have been unavoidable.
 
An Attack on a Hospital
The terror campaign began on January 27, 2020. At 2:20 AM, an improvised explosive device, packed with "Rocket Candy," blew up in a men's toilet at Caritas Medical Centre's A&E. A police officer, there by chance, helped manage the evacuation. The blast was powerful enough to shatter pipes. A Telegram channel, "Kau Chim 92," later claimed responsibility, stating the attack was meant to force a strike by medical staff.

The wreckage: What a 'Rocket Candy' bomb did to a toilet stall in Caritas Medical Centre's A&E.

Explosives expert Superintendent Lo Ping-sin told the court what his team found in the wreckage: a shattered glass bottle containing up to a kilogram of a nitrate-based explosive. Wired to a circuit board and wrapped in black tape, it was a classic improvised explosive device (IED) designed to produce intense flames and smoke that water couldn't extinguish—powerful enough to kill, maim, or cause massive damage.
 
Another expert, Acting Senior Superintendent Li Chin-chiu, confirmed the device was a "Rocket Candy" bomb. He testified that the dense, high-temperature smoke it produced could have caused lung burns and blocked escape routes, a deadly scenario in a hospital filled with immobile patients on wheelchairs.
 
"Baked Alive" on a Train
The second attack came on February 2. A cleaner on an MTR train pulling into Lo Wu Station found a bag containing a suspicious object with a flashing red light. She immediately moved it to the platform just as it began spewing thick smoke, averting disaster. The same Telegram group claimed responsibility, demanding the government close the border.

Averted disaster: This bag held a bomb designed to fill a train with deadly smoke. A cleaner's quick action at Lo Wu MTR station prevented mass casualties.

Superintendent Lo confirmed two IEDs were recovered from the scene at Lo Wu. One contained about a kilogram of low-grade explosives. Both were built with the same radio-controlled design using potassium nitrate and sugar, and both were fully capable of causing death or serious injury.

A Meticulously Planned Massacre
Acting Senior Superintendent Li painted an even grimmer picture. He testified that if the cleaner hadn't found the bomb, the casualties would have been catastrophic. Had it gone off in the enclosed carriage, passengers would have been blinded by smoke and potentially "baked alive" by the heat. Li believed the bomb was "meticulously designed" not for Lo Wu, but to detonate 40 minutes later, when the train returned to a crowded urban area, leaving passengers with "nowhere to run."
 
The third plot was the most ambitious: a 20kg "tombstone-shaped bomb" to be detonated outside Sheung Tak Estate car park in Tseung Kwan O. The target date was March 8, during a memorial event for HKUST student Chow Tsz-lok. Police uncovered the plot just in time, arresting the suspects on March 7 after monitoring their Telegram group where they discussed the plan.

The target: Terrorists planned to detonate a 20kg 'tombstone bomb' here, at a memorial event in Tseung Kwan O, on March 8, 2020. (Image source: Sing Tao Daily)(圖片來源:星島日報)

According to Li Chin-chiu's court testimony, a 20kg "glitter powder" bomb would have had astonishing power. Its kill radius would have been dozens of meters, with the shockwave and sound felt from 300 meters away.
 
The Urban Bomb Factory
Beyond the attacks, the case exposed the group's arsenal. The first two defendants, Ho Cheuk-wai and Lee Ka-pan, rented two units in INNO CENTRE, Tai Kok Tsui. Police discovered what one expert called an "explosives warehouse," a ticking time bomb that endangered the entire building and surrounding community.

An urban bomb factory: Police display some of the massive cache of explosives and raw materials seized from two units in Tai Kok Tsui. (Image source: Sing Tao Daily)(圖片來源:星島日報)

The court heard that in March 2020, police raids on the units turned up a terrifying inventory. Room 503 contained TATP explosives, 35.2kg of raw materials like potassium nitrate and aluminum powder, protective gear, and remote-detonation circuit boards. Room 1008 held over a ton of potassium nitrate (1090.75kg) and 57.5kg of an ammonium nitrate/aluminum powder mixture.
 
Li Chin-chiu testified that the mix of ammonium nitrate and aluminum powder could produce about 70kg of AN/AL explosive, a favorite of terrorist organizations worldwide. The units also contained over 100kg of aluminum powder and 92kg of magnesium powder to boost destructive power. As for the TATP found, it's an infamous high-performance explosive, once dubbed "the mother of Satan" for its immense power.
 
The Terrorist's Playbook
Another expert, Superintendent Cheung Lap-tak, testified that the seized electronic matches, batteries, circuits, and fuses were the four key elements for any IED: power, initiator, switch, and explosive. He confirmed the devices were lethal, with the "Rocket Candy" bomb capable of causing serious damage within a 2-meter radius, and that a fire in Room 1008 would have been catastrophic due to the other chemicals stored there.
 
During the investigation, police found an image on a defendant's phone of a bomb designed to be packed with iron nails. Li Chin-chiu stated in court that adding shrapnel like nails or screws is a classic terrorist tactic designed to maximize indiscriminate carnage by causing direct piercing injuries to anyone nearby.
 
This case lays bare the real and evolving threat of domestic terrorism to Hong Kong's public safety. The bomb-making technology used by these extremist groups advanced rapidly, and their attack plans grew ever more ambitious. If not for the diligent work of the police, an indiscriminate attack on citizens would have led to unimaginable consequences.

Ariel

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In a predictable turn of events, the self-exiled former chairman of Demosistō, Nathan Law, was denied entry into Singapore on the night of September 27. Law, who is wanted by the Hong Kong government with a bounty on his head, was attempting to attend a "conference" but was instead detained by border officials for four hours before being told he couldn't enter, with no reason provided. He was promptly put on a flight back to his departure city, San Francisco, on the morning of September 28, later telling the media his rejection was due to "political reasons."

A failed stunt: Nathan Law's Singapore trip ends in rejection.

According to a September 29 report from the British Financial Times, Nathan Law confirmed he was detained upon his arrival from San Francisco. He claims the Singaporean government interrogated him for several hours without any explanation before ultimately denying him entry.

A Calculated Risk Backfires

Traveling on a British refugee document, Law insisted he was in Singapore for a private, closed-door event and had even secured a visa three weeks prior. He argued that despite holding a "valid entry visa, he was still detained." In his own words, "I was not told the reason for my detention. I was held at the border for four hours before staff from Singapore's Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) informed me of the entry denial. I was not given any reason." He was then moved to another room for several more hours, eventually receiving assistance from a local lawyer, before being sent back to San Francisco. His total detention in Singapore lasted about 14 hours.

The Financial Times, citing sources familiar with the incident, reported that Law contacted several people during his detention, who in turn reached out to the British and American governments. However, it remains unclear whether either the UK or US government ever bothered to contact Singaporean authorities on his behalf.

Let's not forget who the 32-year-old Law is. He is wanted by the National Security Department of the Hong Kong Police Force, with a HK$1 million bounty issued on July 31, 2020, for allegedly inciting secession and colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security. 

The Security Bureau has also designated him a "specified absconder," canceled his HKSAR passport, and banned anyone from providing him with funds. On top of that, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has a warrant for his arrest for inciting others not to vote in an election.

A Desperate Bid for Attention?

The Financial Times rightly pointed out that Law's trip to Singapore was "risky," given the fugitive surrender agreement between Singapore and Hong Kong. Yet, Law claimed he had received "legal advice" that "political crimes were not covered by the extradition treaty." He audaciously reasoned, "I would expect that if they had the intention to extradite me, they would not have given me the visa."

An insider analysis reveals just how naive or intentional this move was. While Hong Kong and Singapore are often painted as rivals, the two governments have always shared a strong relationship. Chief Executive John Lee’s 2023 visit with then-Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is a testament to this. 

With a fugitive surrender agreement in place, any sensible person wanted in Hong Kong, especially an "anti-Hong Kong agitator" like Law, would steer clear of Singapore. His decision to knowingly walk into this situation suggests he was simply trying to create a spectacle and grab some international headlines.

Hong Kong remains steadfast in its commitment to lawfully pursuing and combating fugitives abroad who endanger national security. The message is clear: all offenses will be investigated and punished, no matter how far the perpetrators flee. If these absconders continue their reckless behavior, we can expect more incidents just like this one.

Hong Kong and Singapore maintain strong ties, as seen in Chief Executive John Lee's 2023 visit with then-Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. (Information Services Department Photo)

The World Isn't Taking Sides

The insider added another crucial point: we are in an era of intense great power rivalry, the strongest since the Cold War, as the United States escalates its containment strategy against China and China pushes back. Most countries are wisely choosing to avoid taking sides and have no interest in offending either of the two superpowers. 

Anti-China figures need to wake up to this reality. Singapore's action serves as a diplomatic blueprint for other nations with stable relations with China: there's simply no need to antagonize Beijing.