In Shenzhen Luohu District, conflicts erupted between the owners of the Cuilin Huafu residential community and the developer over the ownership of the underground parking lot. In the presence of the police, Mr. Huang and several owners were brutally assaulted by multiple security guards. Following the incident, several involved security guards were released and returned to work in the community, sparking controversy.
According to a report by mainland Chinese media “Chao News” on June 25, the incident took place on the evening of November 2, 2024. Mr. Huang had dinner at Mr. Han’s house in the Cuilin Huafu residential community in Luohu District, and after the meal, they went to the underground parking lot in the community.
Mr. Huang explained that the underground parking lots on the negative third and fourth floors of the residential complex had never been opened. Many owners suspected that the parking lot was being illegally occupied by the developer. A conflict ensued between the two parties that day, and the police were called to maintain order. Out of curiosity, he and his friends went to the parking lot but ended up being brutally assaulted by several security guards in the community.
Mr. Huang stated that about 10 people on the other side, all armed with tools, started beating them without saying a word. “They dragged me into a blind spot of the surveillance camera and hit me with wooden sticks, boards, and threaded steel bends on my head, back, and waist. I screamed in pain as my head kept bleeding.”
Reports indicate that several other owners were also assaulted that night. One of them, Ms. Tian, said that when they saw the fire door open that night, they went down together to check. As soon as they reached the negative third floor, security guards surrounded them and started beating them with weapons, causing injuries of varying degrees to several owners.
According to Ms. Luo, the owners of the community have engaged in multiple rights protection activities due to frequent elevator malfunctions, issues with the rooftop garden, and developments within the community that were not properly addressed by the developer. On the day of the incident, the owners requested the opening of the parking lot, and the police were present on the scene.
After the incident, Mr. Huang and others were taken to the hospital. Mr. Huang received 7 stitches on his head, while Mr. Han suffered two depressions on his face from the assault. Both were classified as having minor injuries. Six of the security guards involved were arrested.
However, to Huang’s surprise, without reaching any compensation agreements, several of the security guards involved were released and returned to work in the community under normal circumstances.
Mr. Huang expressed that initially the police filed a case for group fighting, but 37 days after the incident, the involved security guards were released on bail. The reason given by the police station was that the injuries of Mr. Huang and Mr. Han were classified as minor injuries. Some owners had disputes with the developer, and the developer mistakenly thought that the injured owners were causing trouble in the parking lot that day.
In response to this, Tang He, the chief lawyer of the Guangdong Jet Law Firm, stated that the security guards engaging in a physical altercation in the parking lot, resulting in minor injuries to Mr. Huang and Mr. Han, constituted a crime. Lawyer Xu Jiehua from the Guangdong Rongjiang Law Firm also stated that the actions of the security guards constituted provocation and disturbance crimes.
Incidents of security guards assaulting owners have occurred frequently in mainland China. According to previous reports, on the morning of June 22, 2024, in the Xianyang Rongchuang Yuhexinyuan residential community in Henan Province, an owner entered the community carrying two heavy shopping bags and was suddenly attacked by a security guard with a brick to the head. The man screamed in pain and was later taken to the hospital.
On June 20, 2011, in the Meihuashanzhuang community in Minzhi Street, Bao’an District, Shenzhen, two owners were driving into the residential complex when they allegedly had a conflict with the security guards due to not carrying their access cards. They were then brutally attacked by five or six security guards and more than ten unidentified individuals, resulting in varying degrees of injuries to the owners.
Following the exposure of these incidents, they quickly garnered discontent among many netizens. Netizens expressed their frustration, stating that they spent a lifetime’s worth of money, some even taking out loans to buy a house, and still had to pay property fees every month, only to have a group of people managing them like ancestors. They compared the strictness to that of a prison or a re-education camp.
The incidents of security guards assaulting owners have led to public outrage online. Some netizens suggested that security guards resorting to violence against owners is a criminal act that should lead to immediate arrest by the prosecutor’s office. They also called for clearer regulations in property law, emphasizing that property management companies should only provide services and should have their qualifications revoked if they engage in violence against owners or incite group fights.