On the morning of 5/7/2009, colleagues in the finance department at the Chinese University of Hong Kong grew concerned when 43-year-old Dam Thanh Huy didn't show up for work and didn't answer his mobile phone.
Huy remained absent on 6/7, and no one answered the home phone either. The library where Huy's 33-year-old wife, Duong An Nghia, worked reported that she was also absent without leave.
Huy and Nghia, both originally from Guangdong province, China, had been married for 11 years and had two daughters. Due to financial constraints, they had been living at a scrap recycling station in Ping Che village, Ta Kwu Ling area, in the northern New Territories for several years.
The mysterious phone call
Around 2 PM on 6/7, someone finally answered Huy's mobile phone. The man identified himself as Huy's cousin, claiming the couple had taken their children to Guangdong for a summer vacation the previous day. He said they had left their phone with him and didn't know when they would return to Hong Kong. He then turned off the phone.
This strange call heightened colleagues' worries. Huy was known for his diligence and discipline, never missing work without prior notice. He also cared for his ailing mother in a nursing home, making it unlikely he would leave her to take his family to mainland China for vacation.
Sensing something amiss, his colleagues contacted the police. At 3 PM on 6/7, officers arrived at the family's residence. They saw a short man emerge from the property's fence and disappear. The main gate to the scrap station was locked.
The scrap station covered nearly 450 square meters, consisting of a few tin-roofed structures and a single-story house. The area was sparsely populated, with their only neighbor, Mrs. Hoang, living across the street.
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The unlocked tin-roofed structure on the left, originally the scrap recycling station, now housed 9 stray dogs taken in by Huy. The single-story house on the right, formerly a pigsty, was the family's home. Photo: ifeng |
The unlocked tin-roofed structure on the left, originally the scrap recycling station, now housed 9 stray dogs taken in by Huy. The single-story house on the right, formerly a pigsty, was the family's home. Photo: ifeng
Mrs. Hoang told police she had faintly heard intermittent screams around 11:30 AM on 5/7, like someone calling for help. However, due to heavy rain and the area's remoteness, she dismissed it. She mentioned that Huy's cousin often visited the family for meals and helped with gardening and house repairs.
Following this lead, police located Hua Thang Ky, 42, at house number 74 nearby at 6 PM on 6/7. Ky was Huy's cousin and the mysterious man who had answered the phone. He occasionally slept over at the Dams' house while assisting with repairs and gardening, but primarily resided in his uncle's single-story house.
Ky claimed Huy had visited his mother at the nursing home on the morning of 5/7 and afterward announced his intention to take his family to Guangdong for a few days. He said Huy, concerned about high roaming charges for his Hong Kong number in mainland China, left his phone with Ky and asked him to feed the dogs every afternoon. Ky claimed he had just finished feeding the dogs when the police arrived.
The unraveling lies
Police observed no unusual behavior or expressions from Ky. He claimed he didn't have the key to Huy's house.
However, after interviewing neighbors, the police uncovered Ky's lies. At least two neighbors reported seeing Ky unlock and enter the Dams' house on his own. Mrs. Hoang recalled an incident where Huy forgot his key at work and called Ky to open the door. She witnessed Huy enter the house and return the key to Ky.
When confronted, Ky explained he had previously held the key for house repairs but had returned it. However, he became visibly nervous, evasive, and stammered. When police threatened to search his house, a panicked Ky produced the key from a drawer, claiming he had forgotten to return it.
Meanwhile, investigators discovered numerous clues at the Dams' residence. The house was ransacked, with unwashed dishes in the sink and blood splattered on the walls. The family's identification cards remained in the master bedroom drawer, and Hong Kong Immigration confirmed no recent出入境 records for the family.
Police also found a bloodstained shirt in a spare room, with a hollow plastic pipe, also bloodstained, in the corner. Police dogs detected blood traces under a patch of freshly dug earth about 9 meters from the single-story house.
All evidence pointed towards the family being harmed, possibly buried under the disturbed earth. Police established a task force, reclassifying the missing persons case as a homicide investigation.
Upon hearing the task force's suspicions, Ky collapsed, confessing to the crime.
The suspicious motive
Ky initially confessed that in 2006, he contacted his cousin to work illegally in Hong Kong. Huy offered him a construction job with a 500 HKD daily wage, including room and board. However, after two weeks, Ky discovered he was only being paid 220 HKD and angrily returned to Guangdong.
In 2007, facing financial hardship, Ky again contacted Huy for help. Huy assisted him and offered him gardening work at 200 HKD per day if he couldn't find another job.
From then on, Ky traveled to Hong Kong monthly with a travel document to work illegally. He took outside jobs when available and helped Huy with gardening and repairs otherwise.
Ky's story then took a bizarre turn. He claimed to have had an affair with his cousin's wife. On 5/7, while Huy visited their mother, Ky went to the house and was intimate with Nghia. Huy returned unexpectedly and discovered them. A fight ensued, with Huy threatening to kill Ky. In the ensuing chaos, Ky grabbed a 25 cm fruit knife and stabbed Huy. Nghia, witnessing this, tried to call the police but was subdued by Ky. She screamed, urging her two daughters, who were watching cartoons in the bedroom, to run.
The girls, seeing their father attacked, locked themselves in the bedroom. Ky pried open the door with pliers, killing the children and then Nghia. After a night of contemplation, he buried the bodies in the yard.
On the morning of 6/7, Ky returned to clean up the blood, dug a large hole, buried the four bodies, and covered it with earth. He buried the murder weapons in a separate hole nearby. The police arrived just as he finished.
Friends and neighbors described Huy and Nghia as a loving couple who rarely argued, casting doubt on Ky's claim of an affair, especially given the cramped living quarters with their two daughters present.
The grave in the front yard
At 1 AM on 7/7, Ky was taken to the police station. The investigation team unearthed a knife, a pipe section, pliers, and other tools in front of the tin-roofed structure.
At 2 AM, authorities began excavating the disturbed earth, discovering not only the four bodies but also a layer of concrete poured over them. It took 13 hours to exhume the bodies.
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The exhumed grave after the bodies were removed. Photo: ifeng |
The exhumed grave after the bodies were removed. Photo: ifeng
The grave was approximately 2.4 meters long and wide, and 1.8 meters deep, covered by a 30 cm layer of concrete. The four bodies were stacked, all dressed in t-shirts, shorts, and barefoot.
At the bottom was Huy, bound with electrical wire, with multiple stab wounds to his stomach, back, and neck. Above him was Nghia, also bound, with electrical wire around her neck and her mouth and nose taped. Next was their 10-year-old daughter, and on top, their 7-year-old. Police surmised Ky buried them in the order of their deaths.
Autopsies revealed Nghia and the younger daughter died from strangulation, the older daughter from suffocation, and Huy from multiple stab wounds.
Holes in the second confession
Under further questioning, Ky changed his story, denying an affair but admitting to "molesting" Nghia and attempting to force himself on her a few times when Huy was away. He claimed Nghia told her husband, leading to Ky being kicked out of the house.
On the morning of 5/7, after Huy visited his mother, Ky entered the house and harassed Nghia. Huy returned unexpectedly, leading to an argument and a fight. In a panic, Ky stabbed Huy, then subdued a terrified Nghia. He then pried open the bedroom door and killed the girls, as described in his first confession. He returned the following day to clean the scene, bury the weapons and bodies, adding the detail of buying cement.
This second confession seemed more plausible. However, further investigation and autopsy reports revealed inconsistencies. The autopsy showed nearly 80 stab wounds on Huy, making it unlikely Nghia would stand by passively. Furthermore, the used dishes in the kitchen contained only Ky's DNA, not the family's. The task force deduced that Nghia was preparing lunch in the kitchen, unaware of the initial attack.
The murder weapon, a fruit knife, didn't belong to the Dams, and Ky had purchased the cement before the murders. This suggested premeditation, not a crime of passion.
Two bank cards in Nghia's name were used at a train station ATM around 3 PM on 5/7, but withdrawals failed due to incorrect PIN entries. Several thousand HKD in cash was also missing from the Dams' house.
The task force concluded Ky's motive was robbery. He forced Nghia to reveal her PIN, but she likely provided a false one. Believing it to be true, Ky strangled her. After failing to withdraw money, he returned to find the older daughter suffocated and the younger one still alive, upon whom he vented his rage.
The task force believed Ky lied repeatedly to portray the murders as a crime of passion rather than premeditated, hoping for a lesser sentence. Under further interrogation, he finally confessed his true motive.
The ungrateful killer's plot
Ky confessed he needed 100,000 HKD to renovate his house and pay for his children's education. Unable to secure a loan, he targeted Huy.
Ky viewed Huy as stingy despite his outward generosity, believing Huy underpaid him and had pocketed money deducted from his earlier 500 HKD daily wage. He felt their kindness was a facade to exploit him for cheap labor.
Ky decided to ask Huy for a loan, resorting to violence if refused.
At 10:30 AM on 5/7, Ky arrived at the Dams' house with a knife. While Nghia cooked lunch, Ky asked to borrow 100,000 HKD. Huy refused, saying he didn't have the money. Ky accused him of withholding wages and exploiting him. Huy, angered by this ingratitude, told Ky to leave.
Ky, however, had already decided on murder and robbery. He attacked Huy as he turned to enter a room, stabbing him while covering his mouth to prevent him from screaming. Ky then subdued Nghia in the kitchen. The girls locked themselves in their bedroom. Ky tied up Nghia and pried open the bedroom door with pliers. He brought the family to the living room, searched for bank cards, and demanded the PIN.
After obtaining the PIN from Nghia, Ky taped their mouths and noses. He put a plastic bag over Nghia's head to prevent her escape. At 2:30 PM, he went to withdraw money, returning at 4 PM after realizing he had been tricked. He found the family dead, ransacked the house, and found 6,000 HKD. After eating the lunch Nghia had prepared, he cleaned the scene, buried the bodies and weapons, and went home.
The next morning, fearing the smell of decomposition, Ky decided to pour concrete over the grave. He bought sandbags to mix with the cement he had previously purchased.
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Hua Thang Ky, wearing a black hood, being escorted to court. Photo: ifeng |
Hua Thang Ky, wearing a black hood, being escorted to court. Photo: ifeng
The prosecution challenged Ky's third confession. The autopsy confirmed Nghia and the younger daughter were strangled, contradicting his claim of finding them dead upon his return. He likely fabricated this to portray the murders as manslaughter.
Police confirmed Ky's wages were deducted by the contractor, not Huy. Moreover, Huy didn't need help with house repairs or gardening; he hired Ky out of kindness.
During the initial and appeal trials, Ky was convicted on four counts of murder. He continued to change his story, blaming Nghia and claiming police coercion.
The judge and jury condemned Ky as "conscienceless," "inhuman," "unrepentant," and "still trying to defame his innocent sister-in-law even in the face of death."
On 23/11/2009, at the High Court, Ky was convicted of three counts of murder and one count of manslaughter, receiving a life sentence.
Tue Anh (according to HK01, ifeng)
