By Alan Duke
(CNN) — Michael Bay apparently was the victim of a violent shakedown by men demanding money on a Hong Kong street Thursday, police said.
Hong Kong police only identify the victim as a foreign man named “Michael,” but the details of the incident indicate it was the American director.
Bay, 48, is in Hong Kong filming the fourth installment of the “Transformers” movie franchise, which is due in theaters next June. The “Transformers: Age of Extinction” cast includes Mark Wahlberg and Nicola Peltz.
He suffered a facial injury but didn’t go to a hospital, a Hong Kong police spokeswoman told CNN.
Bay’s representative did not immediately respond to CNN requests for comment or confirmation of the police report. His company’s official Twitter account posted a message saying, “We are on top of the latest developments out of #hongkong Stay tuned.”
The attack began at 8:44 a.m. when two men approached “Michael” along King’s Road in Chaiwan, the area of Hong Kong where the action movie is being filmed, the police report said.
Two men — brothers with the surname Mak and ages 27 and 28 — demanded he give them 100,000 Hong Kong dollars, which is about $12,000 in U.S. currency, the police spokeswoman said. The brothers allegedly attacked when he refused to pay up.
The attackers resisted police who were called to the scene, causing minor injuries to three officers, she said.
The younger Mak brother, who was charged with blackmail and assault on a police officer, was taken by ambulance to a hospital for treatment of his injuries, she said. The older bother, who complained that he was not feeling well, was arrested on a charge of common assault and assaulting a police officer, she said.
CNN’s Judy Kwon in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
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