A young mother moved to a subdivided flat with her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter. When the father-in-law and mother-in-law visited to take their granddaughter home, they found that the granddaughter was dead and the mother of the baby girl was lying on the ground. The doctor later confirmed that the baby girl was poisoned and strangled. The police found a suspected suicide note in the phone and residence of the mother of the baby girl, which wrote that she felt that she had done something wrong, felt depressed, and didn’t know how to continue. Psychiatrists believe that the mother of the baby girl suffered from adjustment disorder at the time of the incident, which may have weakened her judgment and control ability. The mother of the baby girl pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the High Court today (25th). The judge postponed the sentencing to September 24, pending the request for the housewife’s mental, psychological and probation reports. She will continue to be remanded in custody during this period.
The female defendant, Liu Jiaqi, 27 years old, is a housewife. She was originally charged with one count of murder, alleging that she murdered Luo Yuening in a unit of Lai Palace Building, King’s Road, North Point on April 23, 2022. She denied the murder charge, and the prosecution accepted the defendant’s admission of manslaughter on the basis of reduced responsibility and mental disorder.
Living in harmony with her husband’s family after marriage
The case file stated that the female defendant, who was 24 years old at the time of the incident, married her husband in July 2020 and gave birth to a daughter in September of the same year. The defendant’s family originally lived in Tseung Kwan O, living with the father-in-law and mother-in-law, and the relationship between them was generally harmonious. The defendant and her daughter moved to a subdivided unit in North Point Lai Palace Building in March 2022. The defendant’s husband did not follow, but occasionally visited his wife and daughter in the unit.
The defendant threw the key out of the unit
The defendant’s father-in-law originally went to the unit on April 22, 2022 to pick up his granddaughter to stay at their home temporarily, but failed to contact the defendant. The father-in-law and mother-in-law went to find the defendant on the evening of April 23, but no one answered the door. Afterwards, the defendant threw the key out of the unit, and the two immediately opened the door with the key. At that time, the defendant was lying on his back on the ground, unable to speak, and his daughter was in bed, no longer breathing and pulse, limbs became stiff and lips turned purple.
The defendant had a red mark on her neck and a torn cord on the ground
When the paramedics arrived, the baby girl had no signs of life; the defendant had a red mark on her neck and a torn cord on the ground. The defendant was sent to the hospital for treatment and then arrested. She did not respond to the warning.
Left a suicide note saying she would take her daughter away
The police found two files in the defendant’s mobile phone, one of which stated that the defendant felt depressed and did not know how to continue; the other file stated that the defendant had done something wrong and felt miserable, and said that he decided to “leave with his daughter.”
The police found two suicide notes in the unit, one of which stated that the defendant was determined to commit suicide and would take his daughter away, and the other suicide note stated that the defendant refused to have her and her daughter autopsied after death, and the cause of death of the two was poisoning and suffocation.
The baby girl was affected by two drugs and her mouth and neck were compressed
The forensic doctor said that the baby girl’s face was congested due to continuous pressure on the neck, which was a sign of suffocation. In addition, two drugs, Chlorpheniramine and Naphazoline, were found in the baby girl’s blood. The combined effect of the two drugs can cause coma and convulsions, and eventually lead to death. The forensic doctor believes that the cause of death of the baby girl is the adverse reaction of the two drugs and the pressure on the mouth and neck.
The defendant suffered from adjustment disorder at the time of the incident
Two psychiatrists pointed out that the defendant suffered from adjustment disorder and felt depressed at the time of the incident. She was depressed, had poor sleep, loss of appetite and suicidal thoughts. The doctor believed that adjustment disorder could seriously impair the defendant’s judgment and control ability.
Case number: HCCC37/2025
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