Police suspect the unidentified man whose chained and decomposed body was found on a remote hillside in Sai Kung Country Park on Sunday was a mainland raider of 'fung shui trees'.
The hillside where the badly decomposed body was discovered is popular with mainland thieves who sneak into Hong Kong from Shenzhen to dig up Buddhist pines, also known as fung shui trees, crime squad investigators say.
'The beach in Long Ke Tsai is used as a loading bay for these mainland raiders,' a police investigator said.
The theory is supported by the fact that the victim's clothing had mainland labels and an empty pack that had contained mainland snacks was found at the scene.
But the officer said it is still a mystery why the ankles and wrists of the victim were chained and padlocked.
As the secluded hillside near Cheung Ngam Teng where the body was found is precipitous and very difficult to reach, police believe he was chained and killed there.
Buddhist pines, common on the east coast of the park, have been the target of mainland thieves for many years because they fetch high prices across the border.