Blood and rage recounted in Cityplaza horror attack

A jobless man yelled "Liberate Taiwan" before attacking a couple with a knife and biting off the left ear of then Democratic Party district councilor Andrew Chiu Ka-yin in Tai Koo Shing during 2019 unrest, the high court heard yesterday.

Joe Chen, 49, pleaded not guilty to three counts of wounding with intent and one of assault when he appeared before high court judge Judianna Barnes Wai-ling and a jury of four women and three men.

Testifying, Louis Wan Ho-lun, who suffered serious knife wounds outside the Cityplaza mall near Taikoo Shing, where protesters had gathered on November 3, 2019, said he was about to leave the mall with his wife, Leung Pik-kei, along with her cousin and the cousin's son at around 6pm for dinner.

When he stepped out of the mall a man wearing a backpack in front with both hands inside it was standing three meters to Wan's right.

The man yelled "Liberate Taiwan" using half-Cantonese and half-Putonghua, to which Wan replied: "What are you talking about?"

The man then muttered words inaudible to Wan. And that was when Wan realized something was wrong and told his group to stay behind him.

The man then walked towards Wan, with his hands still in his backpack and muttering.

"I suddenly felt something wet and cool," Wan said. "I lifted my shirt and saw a lot of blood coming from my stomach."

Wan applied pressure to his wound to stem the bleeding but then saw the man walking at his wife from behind.

Wan ran at the man and dragged him to the ground.

"When I was falling to the ground with him I saw something that looked like a knife fall ... It was about eight inches long with a brown handle.

"I then felt very tired and my back was completely wet. I tried to crawl towards my wife, but I blacked out completely."

The prosecution said Chen then went towards Leung after Wan blacked out, and said: "It does not matter even if I am dead," before stabbing her in the back.

Chiu, who had been attempting to stop a confrontation between security guards and citizens in the mall, heard a call for help at that time and saw Wan and Leung injured and a knife on the ground.

He asked Chen: "Why are you assaulting others?" Chen responded in Cantonese: "I am not assaulting men but dogs."

Chiu asked security guards to restrain Chen, but he evaded them and tried to run at other people.

And as Chiu tried to stop him Chen bit off his left ear and shaped to bite his other ear.

That was when Chen was grabbed by police officers.

Chiu was in hospital for 19 days after the incident, when an attempt to re-attach his ear was unsuccessful.

Wan was found to have been stabbed in his stomach, below his neck, in his back and left shoulder. He was unconscious when rushed to hospital. He was in an intensive care unit for three days and discharged six days later.

His wife was in hospital for three days after being stabbed.

The case continues today.