A family dispute over money was the “root cause” of the killing and dismemberment of Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi, prosecutors told a court on Wednesday, as the trial of her ex-husband and two of his relatives began.
Choi’s ex-husband Alex Kwong, his brother Anthony Kwong and their father Kwong Kau all pleaded not guilty to her murder, according to CNN. Choi went missing on February 21, 2023, and body parts believed to be hers were found three days later at a house in the city’s Tai Po district, along with a meat slicer, an electric saw and clothing, police said at the time.
In her opening speech, prosecutor Charlotte Draycott described a wide gap in wealth between Choi and her former in-laws, saying arguments over finances and Choi’s plans to sell a luxury apartment set in motion a family plot to kill her.
Money seems to be the root cause of this case.
Draycott told the jury of eight men and one woman that Choi, who was no longer married to Alex Kwong and whose new partner came from an “extremely wealthy” family, continued to provide a “generous allowance” to the Kwongs, who “were not rich people.” The support included a HK$60 million ($7.6 million) apartment held in Kwong Kau’s name, given in part because the family helped care for her two children with Alex Kwong, Draycott said.
The once-cordial relationship with Kwong Kau, a retired police sergeant, turned sour in 2022 when Choi tried to sell the renovated apartment and move her former in-laws further from downtown so her children could attend school there, Draycott said. Kwong Kau came to disown Choi and allegedly tried to assault her on one occasion, while Choi described him as a “crook” and “ungrateful” and worried the Kwongs would turn her children against her, according to the prosecutor.
“If she died, the flat would be in his name and he could move back there,” Draycott said. “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. Each of them played a part by bringing her death and burying her body.”
Choi was born on the southern Chinese island of Hainan and moved to Hong Kong at the age of five, the jury heard. She met Alex Kwong while still in school and the pair married in 2014; he never held a job during the marriage and depended on Choi’s family for support, Draycott said. Choi, a mother of four, moved in showbiz circles, appeared at fashion events and had a significant online following, and her killing drew global attention.
Police said at the time that only parts of Choi’s body had been recovered. The Kwongs were arrested soon after the discovery in Tai Po.
The trial continues on Friday and is expected to last at least eight weeks.