Hardware clerk details hammer purchase in Abby Choi trial
HK01 · 4 SOURCESabout 3 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
At the murder trial over the death of socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung, a hardware shop clerk said first defendant Kwong Kong-kit bought kraft tape and appeared to request a ball-peen hammer, while briefly examining a rubber floor mat that he ultimately did not purchase. Prosecutors have paired that testimony with CCTV footage showing a sequence of purchases and movements by Kwong, his father Kwong Kau and his brother Kwong Kong-chi in February 2023, including knives, gloves, ropes, storage boxes and a second-hand refrigerator. On Tuesday, the court also viewed footage that the prosecution said captured Choi's last known image alive, when she got into a seven-seater outside her Kadoorie Hill residence at about 2:30pm on 21 February 2023
Key Points
- The three defendants are former brother-in-law Kwong Kong-kit, 35, a driver; former father-in-law Kwong Kau, 69, retired; and former husband Kwong Kong-chi, 32, unemployed.
- They are charged with murdering Choi on 21 February 2023 in Hong Kong and with preventing the lawful burial of her body between 21 and 23 February 2023.
- Shop clerk Chow Wai-shing said Kwong first asked for kraft tape, was given two rolls, then gestured for what looked like a round-headed hammer
- Chow said he then produced a ball-peen hammer, adding that Kwong also picked up a rubber mat for inspection but did not buy it
- Under cross-examination, Chow said he did not know what customers used a one-pound hammer for, except that hammers are generally used for driving nails
Why It Matters
The prosecution is using CCTV footage and shop testimony to build a detailed timeline of purchases, travel and meetings before Choi's disappearance, allowing jurors to compare witness evidence with recorded movements. For Hong Kong readers following one of the city's most closely watched murder trials, the evidence now being aired in open court shows how the case is turning on reconstruction of ordinary-looking transactions and short movements across multiple districts.