Blood on skull in soup pot shows Abby Choi was struck before death, court hears
On day 31 of the murder trial, a senior forensic pathologist testified that Abby Choi likely suffered a blow to the head before death, based on blood found on her skull in a soup pot. Knives, a saw, and joss paper items were also presented as evidence.
The High Court heard on Thursday that Abby Choi Tin-fung likely suffered a blow to the head before death, leaving blood on the skull later recovered from a soup pot. The evidence came on the 31st day of the high-profile murder trial, as the prosecution called its final witness, senior forensic pathologist Kwok Ka-ki.
Kwok, who witnessed and performed Choi's autopsy, told the court that she was called to the Lung Mei Village flat in Tai Po about 7pm, three days after Choi was reported missing, to examine the remains at police request. She testified that she found two dismembered human legs wrapped in plastic bags in the fridge, with sharp edges around the severed area suggesting they had been severed by a sharp instrument. She said the legs matched the characteristics of an adult woman, consistent with Choi's age and medium build, concluding that both came from the same person.
An irregular circular cut above the left knee marked where most of the skin and muscle on Choi's thigh had been removed, whereas the right leg had been severed from the lower abdomen with its flesh still intact and parts of the ovary and fallopian tube still attached to the pelvic wall. She concluded the legs had been cut from the lower abdomen with a sharp instrument, and that the postmortem wounds were consistent with the estimated time of death on 21 February 2023.
The court also heard that a large soup pot on the kitchen stove contained a brown, greasy, cloudy liquid mixed with soft carrot chunks, with a severed head and several suspected body parts submerged. Kwok reported a depressed fracture on the right side of the skull with a large hole which suggested Choi had received a blow to the head from a blunt object, causing intracranial bleeding. Although the duration of the cooking could not be determined, the intracranial bleeding suggests the injury was inflicted before Choi died, noting that the skull's flesh separated easily from bone, muscle tissue still clung to it, and blood remained on the skull.
Kwok also found a gray plastic box filled with water in the bathroom, with a small piece of suspected human tissue floating inside. In the water were a beef knife, a cleaver, a circular power saw and a metal tray, with small fragments of suspected human tissue found on the saw, she added, confirming all items were sent to the Fu Shan Public Mortuary for further examination.
The court also heard a police sergeant testify that the joss paper seized from the Tai Po flat was for worshipping deities, while the candles and incense were for 'the dead.' He confirmed that the items had been kept in a red plastic bag at the flat, with the bag and joss paper later placed in separate evidence bags and taken to the station. Other exhibits included a burner, a green, square tin can bearing the words 'SS Superior Rapeseed Oil,' with a handle on top and holes cut into its side, in which shredded Octopus cards and credit cards were found. He also identified a can of petrol found behind the tin, agreeing it would not have been needed to burn the joss paper since it catches fire easily. Under cross-examination, the officer agreed a sheet of joss paper bore the characters 'long life and great wealth', which is different from the stack for worshipping the dead.
Alex Kwong Kong-chi, Anthony Kwong Kong-kit and their father, Kwong Kau, are jointly charged with murdering Choi. All three have denied the charge of murder but have pleaded guilty to preventing the lawful burial of a body.