Juror discharged as Abby Choi murder trial enters 34th day

A juror has been discharged from the high-profile murder trial of Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung, leaving eight panel members to hear the remainder of the case as proceedings entered their 34th day in the High Court.

The 28-year-old model was allegedly killed, dismembered, and cooked in February 2023. Her former husband Alex Kwong Kong-chi, former father-in-law Kwong Kau, and former brother-in-law Anthony Kwong Kong-kit have all pleaded not guilty to murder.

Jury panel reduced to eight members

The jury panel initially consisted of nine members, comprising eight men and one woman. When proceedings resumed on Tuesday afternoon, Deputy High Court Judge Brian Keith informed the court that he had received a written request from one of the jurors seeking to be relieved of their duties.

The court granted the application and discharged the juror accordingly. Following the decision, the trial will continue before a reduced jury of eight members, consisting of seven men and one woman.

Murder charges denied while burial obstruction admitted

The prosecution concluded its evidence last week, after which Anthony Kwong took the witness stand to testify in his own defense.

All three defendants face one joint count of murder and one joint count of preventing the lawful burial of a body. The prosecution alleges that the trio murdered Choi on February 21, 2023, on the ground floor of a village house in Lung Mei Tsuen along Ting Kok Road in Tai Po. They are further accused of preventing the lawful burial of her body at the same location between February 21 and February 23 of that year.

While all three men have maintained their innocence regarding the murder charge, they have each pleaded guilty to preventing the lawful burial of Choi's body.

Legal representation in English proceedings

The trial is being conducted in English before Deputy High Court Judge Brian Keith.

The prosecution is led by external Senior Counsel Charlotte Draycott, appearing alongside Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Gary Leung Yuk-hang, Senior Public Prosecutors Human Lam Hiu-man and Gabriel Ng Hay-lok, and Public Prosecutor Herman Wan Pui-hin.

The defense is represented by separate legal counsel for each accused man, with barrister Trevor Beel acting for Anthony Kwong, barrister Oliver Davies appearing on behalf of Kwong Kau, and barrister Andrew Raffell representing Alex Kwong.

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