In the case of the Chen Tongjia murder case, which has been used by the Hong Kong government to initiate the revision of the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, the suspect Chen Tongjia, after the mother of the murdered woman Pan Xiaoying publicly denounced and even questioned the Chief Executive’s “original intention,” released an audio recording this morning, claiming that he would be arranged by his lawyer to surrender to Taiwan. The Rev. Koon Ho-ming, secretary-general of the Anglican Church in Hong Kong, who assisted him, said he expects Chen to make the trip within this month.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council spokesman Chiu Chui-ching immediately responded, reiterating that the Criminal Police Bureau and the Hong Kong Police Department have established a single contact window for Chen Tong-chia’s case, and that Chen is aware of this arrangement, and that if Chen Tong-chia is determined to face justice in Taiwan, he can contact them through the window at any time. Chiu stressed that the key to the case is Chen Tongjia’s true willingness to surrender and the Hong Kong government’s sense of responsibility.
In early 2018, Chen Tongjia traveled to Taiwan with his girlfriend Pan Xiaoying, during which he killed her and absconded to Hong Kong. He was released from prison on October 23 last year after being arrested by Hong Kong police for using items taken from the victim’s body. He had claimed that he was willing to go to Taiwan to surrender for the murder of Pan Xiaoying, and has been living in a police “safe house” for witnesses or protected persons since his release from prison. Late last month, Pan’s mother questioned through the media why Chen had not yet surrendered to Taiwan, claiming that she was willing to buy a one-way ticket for Chen to surrender to Taiwan; she also questioned Chief Executive Carrie Lam, who started the legislative amendment process with the Chen Tongjia case, “Why is there such a big difference between your original intention now and your previous intention? Where are your first thoughts? In the beginning, the media accused the pro-establishment Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) chairman, Starry Lee, and Zhou Ho Ding, who accompanied her to meet with reporters, of ignoring her afterwards, and even threatened to boycott the interview of the TV station that hosted Starry Lee’s program. In addition, the media also questioned Police Commissioner Tang Bingqiang about Chen’s eligibility for a “safe house” paid for by public funds.
After less than ten days of questioning, Chen Tongjia released a brief audio recording through Pastor Kuang Ho-ming, claiming that his decision to turn himself in to Taiwan remained unchanged, and asked them to rest assured that his lawyer would arrange for his return to Taiwan later and apologize to Pan’s parents.
He also apologized to Pan’s parents. At the same time, Pastor Guan released a response to Chen Tongjia’s surrender to Taiwan, expressing his gratitude to “Pan’s mother” for her willingness to plead for Chen Tongjia and give him a chance to turn over a new leaf. In a recent interview with the media, Pan’s mother said that if Chen Tongjia has the courage to be a responsible person and turn himself in, she can consider pleading for him, but she will never forgive him.
Rev. Guan said that Chen has already informed the Taiwan lawyer to contact the relevant departments to handle his surrender arrangements, but since it is now a holiday, the Taiwan lawyer will make the arrangements next Monday, pending the lawyer’s notification of the surrender details.
The Hong Kong government announced in February last year that it would amend the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance to remove the barrier between Hong Kong, China and Taiwan for the surrender of fugitive offenders. The reason was to help remove the murderous crime of Pan Xiaoying, which caused a strong backlash from Hong Kong people, who were worried that it would make it easier for the Hong Kong government to send people to China for trial, triggering mass demonstrations since June.
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