Hongkonger who fatally hacked neighbour, 84, gets indefinite sentence at psychiatric hospital

A mentally ill man with past triad affiliations has been sentenced to an indefinite period at a psychiatric hospital for hacking his elderly neighbour to death at a Hong Kong public housing estate three years ago.

The High Court adopted the recommendations of two government doctors on Tuesday and ordered that Ho Sai-yu, 38, continue to receive treatment at the Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre in Tuen Mun until he was deemed no longer a danger to society.

Ho earlier admitted to using a 40cm (15.7 inch) meat cleaver to inflict at least 45 cuts on Wong Hang-lam, 84, at Heng On Estate in Ma On Shan on September 27, 2021.

The defendant, who has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, said he intended to kill anyone coming out from the flat next to his 19th-floor home as he could no longer bear the noise allegedly caused by his neighbours.

He was initially charged with murder but pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds that he was suffering an abnormality of the mind, which significantly reduced his liability.

Madam Justice Anna Lai Yuen-kee said the defendant remained a “really violent” man despite receiving years of psychiatric treatment after his offence, as evidenced by his past involvement in street violence and substance abuse.