Store chief's mother 'feared daughter-in-law could kill'

The 70-year-old mother of a supermarket manager being tried for the murder of his ex-wife told a jury yesterday she was driven out of the family home because she feared her daughter-in-law would kill her.

Ng Wong-chi said her son's wife, Tang Ching, 32, caused a rift which split the family for 10 years.

Her son, Or Fat-chin, 35, admits stabbing Tang to death but denies her murder, claiming he was provoked and his responsibility for the killing diminished.

Ms Ng said she had lived with the couple after their marriage in 1985 but did not get on with her daughter-in-law.

'Tang Ching swore at me and caused a row,' she told the court. 'As we were not talking, I moved out. I did not live there because I was afraid that one day she might kill me.' For the next 10 years, the mother and son hardly spoke to each other, the court heard. Ms Ng said: 'Tang Ching did not allow my son to talk to me.' She was even prevented from seeing her grandchildren, two boys now aged nine and 14, she claimed.

Sometimes she would bump into her son in the street. 'We would talk to each other quickly, for a few words,' she said.