Hong Kong student pleads guilty to performing ‘violent and cruel’ acts on animals to fulfil clients’ heart’s desires
- The 19-year-old offered two types of services: the love ritual and the break-up ritual
- For decapitating a mouse and stabbing two frogs in their heads in two rituals, he received HK$20,000 from two unknown women
A vocational school student has pleaded guilty to nine animal cruelty offences in Hong Kong for running an online business out of sacrificing animals by purporting the rituals could help mend broken relationships.
West Kowloon Court heard on Monday that Tong Cheuk-him had earned about HK$118,600 (US$15,110) for performing “violent and cruel” ceremonies with small animals such as mice, rabbits and frogs between July 25 and August 11 last year.
The 19-year-old was pursuing a sports science diploma at VTC Youth College when he began learning “witchcraft” on social media a year before the offences. He set up an Instagram account in early August 2021 to promote his trade.
Tong had offered two types of services: the love ritual and the break-up ritual. The former involved slashing small animals with a knife and draining their blood to improve the client’s luck in romance. The latter was carried out under similar procedures, but with the aim of putting a curse on a specific couple at the client’s wishes.
A businessman and animal welfare supporter filed a complaint to police after learning that Tong had sacrificed animals for a return of no less than HK$15,000 for each rite.
Police arrested Tong in a sting operation at Tsuen Wan West MTR station on August 11 last year. Officers seized from him a rabbit, five mice, a 26cm dagger and tools linked to the rituals, such as amulets, incense and tarot cards.