Life and crimes of Big Spender coming soon
THE colourful life of 'Big Spender' Cheung Tze-keung has been made into a television series on the mainland.
The series, called Stunning Case - The Arrest Of Cheung Tze-keung's Syndicate, is expected to be released in Guangzhou soon, according to Xinhua.
It is believed the Guangdong municipal public security bureau handed over previously confidential information about the investigation to help the production.
Some senior mainland officials involved in the investigation were also invited as consultants.
The series details several cross-border offences carried out by Cheung and his ruthless gang from 1990, including smuggling explosives and murders.
It also covers the gang's audacious kidnappings.
The gang kidnapped Victor Li Tzar-kuoi, son of tycoon Li Ka-shing, in 1996.
Cheung allegedly visited Li Ka-shing and demanded $800 million for the safe return of his son.
In 1997 the gang kidnapped tycoon Walter Kwok Ping-sheung and held him in a shed in the New Territories while demanding a $600 million ransom.
The TV series also details how the gang was finally arrested and brought to justice.
Cheung was executed in Guangdong province in December 1998 after his appeal against the death penalty was rejected.
Before the handover, Cheung and his accomplice, Yip Kai-foon, launched a series of spectacular robberies.
But things changed after the handover when Beijing ordered a crackdown on crime in Guangdong.
When it was discovered that Cheung had entered Guangdong, hundreds of police were sent to find him.
As for Yip, in 1996 a police rookie shot him three times, leaving him paralysed. He is now serving a 40-year jail term in Stanley Prison.
