Woman who killed daughter in Hong Kong gets indefinite hospital order

A mother diagnosed with schizophrenia has been sentenced to an indefinite term of custody at a psychiatric centre in Hong Kong after stabbing her daughter to death while experiencing delusions at a public rental flat four years ago.

Part-time security guard Yang Leying broke down in tears as High Court judge Anthony Kwok Kai-on delivered the sentence on Wednesday. As the 50-year-old was led away from the courtroom afterwards, she yelled and was visibly distraught.

Yang pleaded guilty at the High Court in June after prosecutors agreed to reduce her original murder charge to manslaughter, on the basis that she was suffering from an “abnormality of the mind” when she fatally attacked her 24-year-old daughter, Chen Lianqin, on December 6, 2021.

Prosecutors earlier said the city’s mental health service became aware of Yang around 2007 or 2008 when she was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Yang initially appeared sombre while in court on Wednesday, but as the proceedings went on, she broke down in tears.

“The defendant’s mental condition needs to be supervised and monitored in a mental institution,” Kwok said, sentencing the defendant to an indefinite term in Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre, a move recommended by two psychiatrists.

One suggested that Yang not only had poor control and insight into her mental illness, but was also at risk of violent behaviour.