When a madman murdered 5 people in their sleep in a ‘ghastly attack’ in Hong Kong
- In May 1930, Li Man-pun killed five people and wounded another with a heavy butcher’s knife in an unprovoked attack, then tried to commit suicide
- He was overpowered by a cook at the scene, and later found guilty of ‘murder while of unsound mind’
On Monday, May 26, 1930, the South China Morning Post ran the headline “Ghastly Night Attack” above a story describing events “enacted in the early hours of Saturday morning, when a Chinese living on the premises of the Hung Tak Bank at 165 Queen’s Road Central, suddenly ran amok and, with a heavy butcher’s knife, murdered five people in their sleep within the space of a few minutes; wounded another, and then, in desperation, turned the weapon on himself in an unsuccessful attempt to commit suicide. He was disarmed with great difficulty.
“While the ghastly work proceeded, the place was converted into a shambles, blood flowing in a cascade down the staircase and trickling through the floor-boards. Panic seized the other occupants, and there were frenzied cries for assistance before a cook employed in the establishment had sufficient presence of mind to tackle and overpower the madman, which he did with the greatest resource.” The victims, all male, ranged in age from 11 to 19.
On June 12, the Post reported, “with a lengthy scar on his throat, Li Man-pun […] appeared before Mr [R.E.] Lindsell in the Central Magistracy yesterday and was formally remanded for a week.”
Li was charged with only one murder, that of Fung Sik-cheuk, 19.
On July 18, the paper reported that the jury took “less than five minutes to come to the decision that Li Man-pun had murdered Fung Sik-cheuk while of unsound mind […] The Chief Justice, Sir Joseph Kemp, ordered the accused to be detained in Victoria Gaol ‘until His Majesty’s pleasure is known’.