Hong Kong: The anti-corruption watchdog, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), announced on Friday that it had arrested eight people in connection with a housing estate fire that killed at least 128 people, making it the deadliest building blaze worldwide since 1980.

The arrested group includes seven men and one woman, identified as “consultants, scaffolding subcontractors and middleman of the project,” according to the ICAC. The suspects are aged between 40 and 63.

What were their roles?

The ICAC said that four individuals came from the consulting firm overseeing the grand renovation project of Wang Fuk Court. These four comprised two directors and two project managers responsible for supervising the project. The remaining suspects include three scaffolding subcontractors and a middleman.

What happened during the fire?

The blaze tore through seven of the eight high-rise blocks in the residential complex, which contains almost 2,000 units, and burned for more than 40 hours before being brought under control. The complex had been undergoing renovation at the time of the fire.

ICAC investigators have seized work documents and bank records from 13 premises linked to the project. The commission, an independent statutory body, did not provide further details of the alleged crimes.

Are there other arrests?

In addition to the ICAC arrests, Hong Kong police announced on Thursday that three men had been detained on suspicion of manslaughter as part of their ongoing investigations.

AFP inputs