Hong Kong police lay holding charges on 2 in illicit cigarette murder case

Hong Kong police have laid holding charges against two people suspected of aiding offenders in a murder case linked to a financial dispute over illicit cigarettes, just days after the body of a 51-year-old man was found under a bridge.

The man and woman, both aged 62, appeared at Fanling Court on Thursday morning.

The pair are among 13 people arrested in connection with the man’s murder. Five suspects have been detained for further investigation, while the remaining six were released on bail and are required to report to police in mid-September.

Police previously said the victim was driving his seven-seater home to San Sang Tsuen in Tuen Mun when two vehicles intercepted him early on Monday.

He tried to escape but was chased by 10 people, with one threatening him with a blade before another attacked him with a knife.

The man was then forced back into his vehicle and was believed to have lost a lot of blood from a head wound behind his right ear.

He was believed to have died in the seven-seater before having his body dumped under the bridge on Yick Yuen Road. The body was discovered later by a passer-by.