Fatalities in China riot after police kill man

SEVERAL people were killed and dozens were injured in a riot triggered when police allegedly beat to death a resident in southern China, newspapers reported yesterday.

The reports in Hong Kong’s Wen Wei Po and Apple Daily newspapers differed widely over the size of the mob and what led to the clash on Saturday in Da Lang village in Guangdong province.

Wen Wei Po said nearly 50,000 people faced hundreds of police officers after security forces beat to death a relative of a student injured in a traffic accident following a dispute over compensation.

The Apple Daily, meanwhile, said about 1,000 people rioted after security officials beat to death a 15-year-old boy for stealing a bicycle.