Hong Kong police said they subdued a “mentally unstable” woman armed with a pair of scissors after she attacked pedestrians in the Tsim Sha Tsui shopping district on Wednesday.

Investigators were still working to identify the woman, who had caused a disturbance inside a shopping centre on upmarket Canton Road before scolding a cleaner at about 2.15pm, the force said.

She pulled out a pair of scissors from her bag, prompting the cleaner to flee, Chief Inspector Lam Pak-kiu of Yau Tsim district said.

After exiting the mall, the woman walked along the street towards Haiphong Road, where she kicked a female pedestrian, 36, in the abdomen. When a security guard attempted to intervene, she allegedly tried to attack him with the scissors.

She then crossed Canton Road and confronted another female pedestrian, 26, kicking her leg outside the Sun Arcade shopping centre. The victim attempted to stop the woman but was assaulted again, suffering injuries to her mouth and an arm as a scuffle ensued.