Hong Kong yoga ball murder case: accused ‘wanted divorce, then said no to wife’s request’

A former university professor in Hong Kong asked his wife for a divorce but subsequently refused her request for one before allegedly murdering her with a gas-filled yoga ball nine years ago, a court heard on Friday.

The High Court retrial heard testimony about the unhappy marriage between Malaysian Khaw Kim Sun and his wife Wong Siew Fing, who had sought medical help for depression due to their “very bad relationship”.

Khaw, 60, is back in court for a retrial for allegedly using an inflatable yoga ball filled with carbon monoxide to kill Wong, 47, and their daughter Lily Khaw Li Ling, 16, inside the family’s yellow Mini Cooper on May 22, 2015.

Dr Catherine Wong Ka-yan, who met the mother on 18 occasions between November 2013 and April 2015, said the patient had displayed symptoms including low mood, insomnia and a loss of appetite, indicating a moderate level of depression.

“She told me the situation at her home and that she had a very bad relationship with her husband,” the doctor said.

Wong recalled the patient saying her husband first started the discussion on a divorce in 2013, and when she felt she had enough of him several months later, he retracted the proposal and insisted the mother “could not manage without him”.

“I was surprised because that was not consistent [with his previous attitude] … I was shocked,” the witness said.