Hong Kong police officer Chu Cheng-kwok died after 21 years of paralysis after being cut on duty. He was 52 years old.

While on duty 21 years ago, a Hong Kong police officer intercepted a man suspected of armed robbery and was cut on the neck by the other party. After he was injured and chased the other person, he lost excessive blood and lacked oxygen to the brain. He was eventually paralyzed and fell into a vegetative state. After being bedridden for 21 years, he died of organ failure yesterday (16th) at the age of 52.

According to comprehensive Hong Kong media reports, the incident occurred on July 19, 2005. Zhu Zhenguo, then 30 years old, was patrolling alone when he intercepted a 23-year-old man named Liao Zhiyong who was trying to rob. Liao suddenly drew a knife and cut Zhu's neck before escaping. Zhu Zhenguo continued to chase him despite the bleeding from his neck. He eventually fell to the ground due to excessive blood loss, causing brain hypoxia and serious injuries.

Liao Zhiyong surrendered to another police officer at the Prince Edward MTR Station that day. In April 2006, he pleaded guilty in the Hong Kong High Court to charges of possession of offensive weapons and resisting arrest and wounding, and was sentenced to six years in prison. However, the Department of Justice later argued that the sentence was too light and requested a review. In January 2007, the Court of Appeal raised the sentence to 10 years. Liao Zhiyong was later granted parole and received relevant supervision.

Zhu Zhenguo was bedridden for a long time due to this case. In 2006, he was awarded the Gold Medal of Valor by the Hong Kong SAR government in recognition of his bravery in pursuing the knife-wielding man even after being injured.

When Zhu Zhenguo was injured, his daughter was only 8 years old. She recalled that after her father was injured, she would visit him in the hospital almost every day after school, and would also do homework and chat with him. Even though her father was in a vegetative state, she still believed that he would respond to her voice and emotions.

21 years later, Zhu Zhenguo's daughter still remembers that her father "loved me very much" and the family would eat sushi together during the holidays. She also thanked the two people who helped her father get to the hospital on the day of the incident, believing that without their helping hands, her father might not have survived.

Zhu Zhenguo's wife also recalled her husband's personality, saying that he would still pay attention to street crimes even when he was on vacation. When the couple encountered a pickpocket case while shopping, he would even immediately step forward to stop it. The two usually leave notes at home to message each other, and kiss each other goodbye before going to work. Zhu's wife met Liao Zhiyong in 2016 due to a related civil settlement case. She said that even after receiving an apology letter from the other party, she still could not forgive the incident.