Jury discharged after accused dies in 1991 murder case
HK01 · 3 SOURCES1 day ago5 MIN
Summary
Proceedings in the High Court over a 1991 robbery-murder at a Sham Shui Po watch and jewellery shop were formally terminated after the accused, Man Wan-yip (文穩業), died on 14 September. He was 62 and had been remanded since 2023 on murder and attempted robbery charges linked to the fatal shooting of shop worker Cheng Kai-lam at Sun Fat Company on Pei Ho Street. Before his death, a jury had ruled him unfit to plead because he had stage-four lung adenocarcinoma that had spread to his brain, but the trial had continued so jurors could decide whether he had carried out the acts alleged. On 16 September, judge Tam Yiu-ho discharged the jury and said no verdict on that issue would now be required.
Key Points
- The accused was charged with murdering 56-year-old Cheng Kai-lam and attempting to rob Cheng, Cheng Chi, Lo Siu-fung and Choi Hang-chiu on 9 June 1991.
- The case centred on an attempted armed robbery at Sun Fat Company, a second-hand watch and jewellery shop at 1A Pei Ho Street, Sham Shui Po.
- Correctional Services said officers found the remand prisoner unconscious in a single holding cell at the High Court at 1:48pm on 14 September.
- He was given emergency treatment, taken by ambulance to a public hospital, remained unconscious, and was certified dead at 3:28pm that afternoon.
- Judge Tam Yiu-ho told jurors on 16 September that the hearing could not continue, thanked them for eight days of service, and formally ended the case.
Why It Matters
The case had been one of Hong Kong's long-running cold-case prosecutions, relying in part on DNA from blood found on a shirt recovered from a getaway car after the failed robbery. With the accused's death in custody, the criminal proceedings have ended without any jury finding on whether he committed the alleged acts, while a Coroner's Court inquest is expected to examine the death.