Man accused of stabbing taxi driver had planned attack, prosecution says as murder trial begins

A man accused of murdering a taxi driver in 2021 had planned the attack in advance, the prosecution has said, rejecting the defendant’s earlier statements to police that his mind was being “controlled.” The High Court. File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. Matthew Choi, 36, appeared at the High Court on Wednesday for the first day of his murder trial. He was arrested on Lamma Island after a two-day city-wide manhunt in October 2021, following the stabbing of a taxi driver in Sai Ying Pun. See also: ‘Alarm bells rang’: How a Lamma Island resident alerted police after realising ‘drinking partner’ was murder suspect on-the-run During the prosecution’s opening statements, senior public prosecutor Human Lam said Choi hailed a taxi outside WE Hotel on Eastern Street at close to 5am on the day in question, local media reported. When he got in the taxi, he stabbed the driver. The driver was certified dead at Queen Mary Hospital. Hong Kong police arresting Matthew Choi, who was suspected in the stabbing of a taxi driver, on October 13, 2021. Photo: Hong Kong Police Force, via X. Lam said that Choi had told officers, under police caution following his arrest, that his mind was being “controlled,” and he was being targeted by the government. She said the prosecution did not accept such claims, adding that Choi knew clearly what he had been doing. Choi had checked into the Sai Ying Pun hotel, had a knife and a towel with him when he hailed the cab, and cleaned himself up after the act, Lam said. Wife testimony The victim, Wai Kim-hung, was a 48-year-old night-shift taxi driver, the prosecution said. His wife testified on Wednesday. She said she and her husband got married in 2002, and that her husband began working as a night-shift taxi driver in 2009. He was the breadwinner of their family of five, she said. A day-shift taxi driver who rented a taxi with Wai said his partner always cleaned and passed on the vehicle to him punctually at the end of his night-shift, and that he was a friendly person. The Hong Kong Police Force headquarters in Wan Chai. Photo: Candice Chau/HKFP. The trial continued on Thursday with more testimony, local media reported. A woman surnamed Ng told the court that she was walking on Eastern Street when she heard somebody cry for help. A taxi driver surnamed Chan told the court that she stopped at a red light, Wai – in a bloodied top – walked up to her. She rolled down the windows and Wai, pressing his neck, told Chan to call the police. His voice was “not very strong,” Chan said, adding that she then parked her taxi and called the police. At the time, Wai was already lying on the ground. After the incident, over HK$500,000 was raised for Wai’s family through the Hong Kong Taxi and Public Light Bus Association. Murder convictions in Hong Kong result in a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment. Safeguard press freedom; keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team Support HKFP | Policies & Ethics | Error/typo? | Contact | Newsletter | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps Make a one-off donation. Hillary Leung is a journalist at Hong Kong Free Press, where she reports on local politics and social issues, and assists with editing. Since joining in late 2021, she has covered the Covid-19 pandemic, political court cases including the 47 democrats national security trial, and challenges faced by minority communities. Born and raised in Hong Kong, Hillary completed her undergraduate degree in journalism and sociology at the University of Hong Kong. She worked at TIME Magazine in 2019, where she wrote about Asia and overnight US news before turning her focus to the protests that began that summer. At Coconuts Hong Kong, she covered general news and wrote features, including about a Black Lives Matter march that drew controversy amid the local pro-democracy movement and two sisters who were born to a domestic worker and lived undocumented for 30 years in Hong Kong. More by Hillary Leung