The police force is still looking for Choi's missing hands and torso, as the four suspects in the case were suspected of dumping the missing body parts at a refuse collection point.

Officers yesterday found bones in the landfill, but it was unknown whether they were human or animal remains. They have been sent to laboratories for testing.

Superintendent Alan Chung Nga-lun of the Kowloon West regional crime unit said yesterday that the search would take three days but he is confident more evidence will be found.

It is understood that the search area of the size of a football field contained thousands of tonnes of waste, in which officers had only searched through a few hundred of tons of them.

The force said earlier that surveillance camera footage shows that the defendants dumped evidence - including Choi's body parts, clothes, phone and the murder weapon - at a refuse collection point in Lung Mei Village.

After contacting the driver who collected garbage there, the police located a small area of the landfill where they suspected the body parts and Choi's belongings were dumped, with rubbish piled up to five meters deep.