Hong Kong mother sentenced to 22 years in prison for starving and abusing 5-year-old son
Judge condemns crime as showing a 'savage nature utterly devoid of the empathy inherent to motherhood'
Quick Look
A Hong Kong mother was sentenced to 22 years in prison for the abuse and starvation death of her five-year-old son, who weighed only 9.7kg and bore 129 injuries at the time of his death in September 2022.
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Why It Matters
A five-year-old boy died of starvation and prolonged abuse in Hong Kong in September 2022.
A Hong Kong mother who abused and starved her five-year-old son to death was sentenced to 22 years in prison, with the judge condemning a crime that exposed a “savage nature utterly devoid of the empathy inherent to motherhood”.
Madam Justice Susana D’Almada Remedios on Wednesday said she had to impose the heavy sentence on the 37-year-old mother, whom she said had committed the worst form of child cruelty and negligence, causing her son to die of starvation in September 2022.
The boy weighed 9.7kg (21.3 pounds), about half the normal weight for his age, and was one metre tall at the time of his death. An autopsy indicated that he had 129 injuries on different parts of his body.
The report also suggested the boy suffered prolonged abuse including force-feeding, gagging, gripping and violent rubbing.
No food residue was found in his stomach, suggesting he had been starved for at least a few days before his death, according to the findings.
The High Court earlier heard that the mother isolated the child in his room and allowed him to come out only a few times a week. She also lied to teachers to conceal the boy’s absence from school.
Open Questions
- Were other family members involved?
- Did social services receive prior warnings?
