A Hong Kong man has admitted to committing manslaughter and arson after he unknowingly killed his neighbour when he attempted suicide by setting his public rental flat on fire three years ago.
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Fung Chun-kwai, 60, pleaded guilty at the High Court on Friday on the basis that his mental illness had substantially impaired his ability to make sound judgments when he committed the offences in the early hours of April 24, 2022.
A prosecution case summary said Fung had developed “fleeting suicidal ideas” after his estranged wife and sons moved out of his flat at the San Tin Wai Estate in the New Territories. The defendant had lived there since 2006.
Fung also told psychiatrists that he was depressed at the time because he feared being forced to return the flat to housing authorities, in addition to feeling disturbed by the government’s “vaccine pass” scheme.
On April 24, 2022, the defendant’s neighbours woke up at around 2am to a strong burning smell and black smoke that billowed into their flats after the fire broke out on the 19th floor at Fung Wai House.
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The incident led to the death of 28-year-old Siu Chung-hin, who lived adjacent to Fung’s flat, and left six others hospitalised, including Siu’s grandmother. About 400 people were evacuated from the residential block.