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The couple appeared at the High Court on Friday. Photo: Warton Li

Hong Kong couple admit abusing friend’s baby girl who died in their care after months of physical punishment

  • Or Ching-man and Shiu Kwok-wai beat 22-month-old with rattan sticks, chained her up like a dog and starved her
  • When she was finally taken to hospital doctors found she had 70 separate injuries and weighed just 8kg

A Hong Kong couple have admitted abusing a friend’s baby daughter, who was found malnourished and with 70 injuries after she died while in their care.

On Friday, the High Court heard housewife Or Ching-man, 36, brought an unconscious Heiley Or to Tuen Mun Hospital in the early hours of June 20, 2019, claiming she might have choked on a soft pork bone while having congee the night before.

But the 22-month-old child never woke up from her state of cardiopulmonary arrest and was certified dead little more than 30 minutes later.

Doctors noticed she had multiple bruises and abrasions on her face, forehead and legs, and weighed only 8kg.

Heiley Or died at Tuen Mun Hospital. Photo: Dickson Lee

Her carers, Or and construction worker Shiu Kwok-wai, 33, were subsequently arrested. Or said she had given Heiley full attention without abusing her, while Shiu denied ever touching the little girl.

But investigations revealed Heiley had suffered multiple injuries consistent with repeated blunt force trauma, malnutrition to the point of moderate wasting and acute atrophy of her thymus – an important immune organ – which was indicative of exposure to severe long-term stress.

The pair later admitted to abusing and wilfully assaulting the child as punishment, most notably by chaining her with an iron dog leash when she was left home alone, beating her to the point that rattan sticks broke in half, and slapping her so hard her mouth started bleeding.

Their messaging logs also recorded them discussing “a heavy hit”, showing her “something perverted”, and what appeared to be encouragement to “hit her bloody hard” when the girl reportedly stole food.

On May 20, 2019 Shiu texted Or: “When you come back later you handle Heiley, I was so close to killing her just now.”

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The case had a striking resemblance to the shocking abuse of a five-year-old girl, who died of septicaemia in 2018 following months of cruelty that weakened her immunity. Her father and stepmother are now appealing against their murder convictions, which has resulted in life sentences.

On Friday, Or and Shiu, who had three young children of their own, pleaded guilty to one count of wilful assault, ill-treatment or neglect by those in charge of child, between January 2019 and June 20, 2019. The offence is punishable by 10 years in prison.

Prosecutors said Or was a friend of the deceased’s mother, who placed the child and her three-year-old brother in the couple’s care intermittently from April 2018.

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The boy was later given up for foster care arranged by the Social Welfare Department in May 2019 after Or indicated she could only take care of one child. She later repeatedly asked the mother for HK$3,000 to take care of the girl.

When the mother then asked where the girl was and said that she wanted to take her back on May 26, Or sent a QR code and asked the parent to pay up.

It remains unclear what had caused the head injuries that directly caused the child’s death.

Mr Justice Albert Wong Sung-hau will hear mitigation on October 19.

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