A nine-month-old baby was found emaciated, anaemic and with deep wounds from being tied up and struck by minders who were angry at not being paid. Hui Chiu-lai, 21, and Tong Yat-keung, 27, yesterday pleaded guilty to cruelty and wilful assault on baby Kwan Hok-hin, whose mental development doctors say was stunted by the experience. The couple said Kwan's parents were 'totally to blame' after abandoning their child and failing to pay the agreed $5,500 monthly fee for them to care for him. '[Hui] was the only one looking after this child. She did all the things a person who cares about a child would do. She said she holds the father and mother responsible for they just left the baby,' defence barrister William Allan told the District Court. Kwan weighed 6.2kg when he was taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital by his mother on May 8 this year, suffering malnutrition and dehydration. He also had multiple bruises on his face and limbs, cuts over his body, scarring to his eyes, iron anaemia, stunted development, an enlarged liver and a 5cm mark over his left heel, the court was told. In December last year, Kwan was entrusted to Hui and Tong day and night in their Tai Kok Tsui home by his parents - friends of the couple - both of whom worked. Hui told police she had tied the baby's legs to the window so he would not fall off the edge of the bed, and kept him tethered for up to three hours, prosecutor Susanna Ku told the court. Tong admitted 'whacking' the baby's head with a rolled-up magazine, hitting his hands and chest several times to stop him crying and hitting the soles of his feet with a ruler. In April, Kwan became sick with measles and Hui telephoned the boy's mother, who was holidaying for two weeks on Cheung Chau, asking her to take him to a doctor. The defence said Kwan's mother allegedly told her she was too busy worshipping her ancestors to take care of her baby and that Hui should 'take the boy to the doctor if you like - I won't do it, it's too troublesome'. When the mother visited her child in May, she noticed his neglected condition and took him to hospital. Justice Maggie Poon called for psychiatric reports on both defendants and an update on Kwan's condition. She remanded the pair in custody for sentencing on December 10.