It’s the case that shocked Hong Kong and has drawn comparisons to Bong Joon Ho’s Oscar-winning class-divide thriller Parasite.
asserted
that → ’ → thriller
Now, three years after socialite and influencer Abby Choi Tin-fung’s decapitated and dismembered body was found, those who are accused of her killing are facing justice after an unexpected delay.
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who → decapitate → delay
Choi’s ex-husband, Alex Kwong Kong-chi, 31, his brother Anthony Kwong Kong-kit, 35, and their father, Kwong Kau, 68, are standing trial on a joint count of murder.
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husband → stand → murder
If they are found guilty, they face life imprisonment.
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they → find → imprisonment
All three have pleaded not guilty to this charge.
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three → plead → charge
The trio was also charged with preventing the lawful burial of a body.
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trio → charge → body
Alex and Anthony have pleaded guilty to this, though Kau has pleaded not guilty.
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Kau → plead → this
Dozens of people waited outside the courtroom ahead of the trial’s first hearing on September 21, with the Associated Press reporting a live broadcast was arranged for them to watch what was happening inside.
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what → wait → September
But just one week in, High Court Deputy Judge Brian Keith discharged the nine-person jury after a juror asked to be excused, fearing stress from the trial would exacerbate a health condition.
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stress → discharge → condition
A new jury was empanelled, and Choi’s mother, Cheung Yin-fa, took the stand this week, calling, according to the South China Morning Post, her daughter’s ex-father-in-law a “cunning old fox” in emotional testimony that alleged Choi’s ex-husband and his family financially relied on her.
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husband → empanel → her
“Money seems to be the root cause of this case,” prosecutor Charlotte Draycott said in her opening statement, according to CNN.
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Draycott → seem → CNN
So why are the Kwongs accused of killing her if they relied on her?
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they → accuse → her
Born in Hainan in 1994 but based in Hong Kong from the age of five, Choi was a socialite, influencer and fashion model, with a wealthy family thanks to her mother and stepfather Tsoi Cho-san’s construction business.
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Choi → bear → business
A mainstay at Paris Fashion Week, Choi appeared in magazines including Vogue China and grew a sizeable social media following thanks to her “style icon” status.
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Choi → appear → status
Her Instagram account has more than 142,000 followers.
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account → have → followers
Choi married Alex in 2014.
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Choi → marry → 2014
The former couple had a son and daughter before separating sometime before 2016.
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couple → have → 2016
At the time of her death, aged 28, Choi was in a relationship with long-term partner Chris Tam Fong-chun, with whom she also had a daughter and son.
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she → have → daughter
What happened to her?
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What → happen → her
On February 21, 2023, Choi failed to pick up her daughter from school and was reported missing.
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Choi → fail → school
She was last seen at Ho Man Tin, an upper-class estate in Kadoorie Hill where, in 2019, Choi had purchased a four-bedroom luxury apartment for about $HK70 million ($13 million).
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Choi → see → million
The court was played CCTV footage that prosecutors said showed Choi getting into one of two vans used by the Kwongs that afternoon.
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Choi → play → Kwongs
At about 3.20pm, other footage allegedly showed the suspects parking the vans near a property where police recovered Choi’s partial remains three days later.
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police → show → remains
On February 24, 2023, parts of Choi’s dismembered body were found inside a ground-floor flat in Lung Mei Tsuen, a historic rural village in the Tai Po district, about 30 kilometres north-east of Kadoorie Hill.
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parts → dismember → Hill
The court heard her skull was found in a pot of carrot soup.
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skull → hear → soup
Anthony and Kau were arrested the same day Choi’s partial remains were discovered.
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remains → arrest → ?
Alex was arrested on February 25, while attempting to leave Hong Kong, the prosecutor alleged.
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prosecutor → arrest → Kong
Jenny Li Sui-heung – Choi’s former mother-in-law – was sentenced in 2025 to 18 months in prison for perverting the course of justice by concealing her son’s whereabouts, according to Hong Kong’s The Standard.
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heung → sentence → Standard
Often described as “jobless” by local media including the South China Morning Post, Alex met Choi in school.
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Alex → describe → school
A key element is the luxury Kadoorie Hill apartment, which was bought by Choi but registered under Kau’s name.
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which → buy → name
Relations between Choi and Kau soured in 2022, the prosecution alleges, when Choi attempted to sell the apartment.
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Choi → sour → apartment
Choi apparently promised to find the Kwongs a new home.
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Choi → promise → home
According to Draycott, Kau – a retired police sergeant – was dissatisfied with this.
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Kau → accord → this
The prosecution alleges Kau attempted to assault Choi on one occasion, and disowned her.
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Kau → allege → her
Angry and increasingly worried that her ex-husband and former in-laws would turn her children against her, the prosecution alleges, Choi described Kau as a “crook” in audio messages sent to her mother and played in court.
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Choi → worry → court
The prosecution alleges Kau masterminded Choi’s murder, as, if Choi died, the apartment “would be in [Kau’s] name, and he could move back there”.
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he → allege → name
“He made a plan with his two sons Alex, her ex-husband, and Anthony, and we say three of them decided they would do it together,” Draycott argued to jurors in court.
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Draycott → make → court
“Each of them played a part by bringing her death and burying her body.”
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Each → play → body
Defence lawyers have pushed back on the narrative that the apartment solely belonged to Choi, with Kau’s counsel, Oliver Davies, claiming Kau contributed $HK30 million ($5 million) towards it.
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Kau → push → it
Choi’s mother rejects this.
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mother → reject → this
…and 16 more, not listed.
The Aporia
