A debt-ridden Hong Kong couple have been jailed for nine months each for child abuse after a failed murder-suicide bid involving their two young sons in 2021.
The District Court on Tuesday found the pair’s “grave” transgression called for immediate imprisonment, but decided a term commensurate with the time they had spent on remand was appropriate in light of the welfare of their three children, especially the two boys who had been put in harm’s way.
Deputy Judge Merinda Chow Yin-chu said the father, a 41-year-old plasterer, and his wife, 35, had tried to burn charcoal three times in six hours while the boys were sleeping in their bedroom on November 5, 2021.
The mother gave birth to a daughter while on bail pending the trial.
Chow dismissed the defence’s suggestion to sentence the pair to probation.
“Parents share the enormous responsibility of taking care of their children, but when [the two boys] slept on the same bed as their parents, they were left completely in the dark and deprived of the right to live,” she said.
“To end it all cannot solve the problem. It only exacerbates it.”
But Chow accepted that the mother genuinely cared for the boys, now aged nine and five, with the court hearing the two sons yearned for an early reunion with their parents.
The family’s financial plight dates back to April 2019 when the mother was loaned more than HK$3 million (US$385,400) to buy a government-subsidised flat and renovate their new home.
The court heard that the mother incurred further debts by borrowing from more than 30 loan sharks, each for a sum of between HK$100,000 and HK$200,000, in the hopes of settling the existing debts.
The couple decided to take their own lives and those of the two boys in the early hours of November 5, 2021, the deadline for making the repayments.
But the three suicide attempts failed either because the fire was too strong or the two boys awoke to a foul smell in the room.
Police discovered the incident after the mother’s younger sister filed a complaint the following day about the moneylenders’ aggressive collection tactics.
The mother later told officers she had wanted to die with her family because she had no money and was under tremendous stress.
The father claimed he had no intention of going through with the act and had only hoped to comfort his wife, but Chow rejected those contentions.
A government psychologist said in a pre-sentencing report that the offence was the result of the mother concealing her financial difficulties and refusing to seek help from her family and relatives.
A psychological report on the father noted he “showed no reflection” over the incident as he maintained he had not put his sons’ lives at risk.
An assessment of the two boys found they had displayed a “strong attachment” to the defendants and the parents’ incarceration “appeared to have been very disruptive and stressful to the children”.
The deputy judge also noted in sentencing that the two children had been made subject to “unbearable pain and anxiety” due to their separation from their parents.
The couple have spent six to seven months in custody pending the trial and are expected to complete their sentences soon.
Child abuse is punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment, but capped at seven years when the case is heard before the District Court.
If you have suicidal thoughts, or you know someone who is, help is available. For Hong Kong, dial +852 18111 for the government-run “Mental Health Support Hotline” or +852 2896 0000 for The Samaritans and +852 2382 0000 for Suicide Prevention Services.
In the US, call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. For a list of other nations’ helplines, see this page.
