Exclusive | Abby Choi murder: children of slain Hong Kong socialite face ‘5-year wait’ to inherit HK$300 million fortune amid long legal process
- Close friends reveal model built wealth as a savvy investor, particularly in parking spaces and luxury items
- Grieving partner Chris Tam, son of restaurant chain founder, says couple met when they were ‘nobodies’, and their conversations revolved around family and children
Her grieving partner Chris Tam and close friends Joey Wong – widely known on social media as “Mrs Pao”, a play on the Chinese word for panthers due to her love of Bengal cats – as well as Wong’s lawyer boyfriend Bernard Cheng have revealed to the Post how the slain 28-year-old socialite amassed her wealth, recalling with fondness their encounters and enduring love and friendship.
In a written reply to the Post’s inquiries, Tam, son of the founder of popular restaurant chain TamJai Yunnan Mixian revealed he met Choi through her ex-husband Alex Kwong Kong-chi, a suspect in the murder case. The men were junior high classmates before they knew the model.
“Alex later switched to another school where he befriended Abby, whom I met through him, and the three of us often hung out together,” he said.
Tam said he now lived on a family trust and rental income after his father Tam Chuk-kwan sold the restaurant business and invested in rental properties.
“I met her when we were still nobodies. I am a very simple person and an introvert, and our conversations were mostly about our family and children,” he added of his late partner. “I am not someone who is good at expressing myself … But I will always love her and she is always on my mind.”
