Liu Yueteng held a two-way permit to enter Hong Kong. He pleaded guilty to four counts of attempted murder this May for stabbing Lam King-king, Wu Bodi, Liu Wenlian, and Zhang Xuandi with a 20cm fruit knife in Garden Hill, Sham Shui Po, on October 11, 2019.

In the High Court today, Judge Esther Toh Lye-ping slammed Liu’s attack as a coward’s behavior, for he cruelly assaulted four innocent women for no good reason, who were only exercising that morning.

Toh also highlighted the severe nature of Liu’s crime, as he could have stopped after stabbing Lam three times in the neck and back. Instead, Liu ran after the other three women and stabbed them as well.

Zhang was admitted to the intensive care unit, and Lam had post-traumatic stress disorder after the incident. All four have recovered from their stab wounds, and three have already returned to the mainland.

The attacker Liu then fled to the mainland after the attack, where he dyed his hair, explaining to police that he planned to turn himself in on the mainland because Hong Kong had abolished the death sentence long ago.

However, the Chinese police told Liu he could not be arrested or prosecuted for the crime in Hong Kong. Liu returned to the city two days later through the Shenzhen Bay Port and was arrested.

Toh referred to Liu’s psychiatric report, which said that he has an obsessive-compulsive personality disorder and hospital treatment is not advised. Toh then put Liu behind bars for 16 years, saying that the court must hand down a sentence that carries a deterrent effect.

Toh also hoped regular psychological therapy sessions could help Liu with his violent and suicidal behaviors.

The report further pointed out that Liu grew up in mainland China and was bullied by his primary school classmates because of health problems. His health improved when he was studying in secondary school, and Liu also made some friends.

Liu’s mental state became unstable, and he felt hopeless starting from July 2019. He wanted to enjoy the final moments of his life before ending it and traveled to sightseeing spots in the city, including Disneyland and Victoria Harbour, with friends from Shenzhen.

Liu later met a female friend and gifted her a phone. Yet, she soon left with the phone after the two had an argument. Liu then became emotionally unstable and even tried to cut his wrists.

According to the father, Liu once wrote a suicide note and was going to jump to his death but couldn’t summon the courage to do so.