Suspect in Yuen Long murder investigation has fled Hong Kong, police say
Hong Kong Free Press
A Hong Kong man suspected of murdering a woman in Yuen Long last Saturday has fled the city, police have said.
The police received a report of an unconscious woman aged 54 with multiple knife wounds lying on Kam Pok Road last Saturday. She was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.
Bloodstained items including a 45-centimetre long chainsaw, a 30-centimetre long knife, and a pair of UV sleeves were later found by law enforcement near the scene.
Speaking during a police press conference on Monday, Acting Superintendent Tai Yuk-lun said the victim had multiple wounds on her neck, wrists, chest, and stomach. He added that the cause of death still needed to be confirmed by forensic investigators.
Police were now looking for the suspect, a man aged around 40 years old who knew the victim, and held a “personal grudge” against them, Tai said. He is believed to have fled Hong Kong, but police were unsure of his destination.
When asked if the police had any mechanism to extradite the suspect, the police said it depended on which country he had fled to.
“We are not sure where the suspect has gone, we only knew that he has left Hong Kong,” said Tai.
“Of course, we have mutual legal assistance agreements with some places, as well as extradition agreements, we have to see where [the suspect] had gone,” the acting superintendent said.
“We hope to bring the suspect to justice with existing laws.”
Crime rate up almost 50%
News that police were investigating a murder came as the city’s crime rate rose by almost 50 per cent in the first quarter of this year when compared with the same period last year.
Last year, the number of murders in the city rose by 30 per cent. There were 30 homicides in 2022 compared to 23 the year before. Among them, 15 cases involved family members, although domestic violence on the whole declined.
In February, the murder of Abby Choi made international headlines after her body was found dismembered.
The Commissioner of Police Raymond Siu denied that police were too focused on national security concerns and were neglecting other issues when asked by a reporter in February.
For the current financial year, the government increased the police budget to HK$26.8 billion – 6 per cent higher than the previous year.
Support HKFP | Code of Ethics | Error/typo? | Contact Us | Newsletter | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps
Support press freedom & help us surpass 1,000 monthly Patrons: 100% independent, governed by an ethics code & not-for-profit, Hong Kong Free Press is #PressingOn with impartial, award-winning, frontline coverage.
