Four members of the same family charged in connection with the gruesome killing of Hong Kong model Abby Choi appeared in court Monday, after police said they found what are believed to be parts of her dismembered body, public broadcaster RTHK reported. Choi's ex-husband Alex Kwong, 28, his brother Anthony, 31, and their father, Kwong Kau, 65, are charged with her murder. Alex Kwong's mother Jenny Li, 63, is charged with perverting the course of justice, RTHK reported. All four were denied bail, the Kowloon City Magistrates' Court ruled Monday, according to RTHK. They are yet to enter a plea. On Sunday, investigators identified a skull, several ribs and hair believed to be Choi's remains in a large stainless steel soup pot, police said. Other body parts, including Choi's torso and hands, remain missing. It follows a police investigation that began Wednesday after Choi, 28, was reported missing. Two days later, parts of her body were found at a house in the city's Tai Po district, police said. A meat slicer, an electric saw, and some clothing were also found at the home, police said. Choi's ex-husband was arrested on Saturday at a ferry pier on one of the city's outlying islands, police said. His brother and parents were arrested on Friday. A fifth suspect, a 47-year old woman, was arrested on Sunday in connection with the case, police said. Choi, a model and social media influencer with more than 100,000 followers on Instagram, recently appeared as the digital cover model for luxury magazine L'Officiel Monaco and attended this year's Paris Fashion Week. The case gripped the city over the weekend as grisly details of the investigation dominated headlines in local media and thousands of people left condolences on Choi's social media accounts. The court adjourned the case until May 8 to allow for further police investigation, RTHK reported. — From CNN's Kathleen Magramo |
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| People stroll through Macao's historic Senado Square days before the city government lifted a mask mandate, allowing residents and visitors in the gambling hub to be outdoors or in most indoor locations without a face covering from Monday. Masks to prevent the spread of Covid-19 will only be mandatory on public transport and in certain spaces like hospitals, but could be required in other venues at the discretion of people in supervisory roles, the government said on its website Sunday. The changes mark a significant relaxation for one of the few remaining places of earth to hold strict masking rules more than three years since the start of the pandemic. The move follows the ending of mainland China's zero-Covid policy late last year. Neighboring Hong Kong, however, still has strict requirements for indoor and outdoor masking, last week extending its mandate – enforced through fines that can reach more than $1,000 – until at least March 8 with no end date specified. | |
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China is surging ahead with coal, a new report shows, rapidly approving and building new power plants despite its own promises to cut back on carbon as the world plunges ever deeper into the climate crisis. Last year, the country approved the highest number of new coal-fired power plants since 2015, according to the report, released Monday by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and the Global Energy Monitor (GEM). "China continues to be the glaring exception to the ongoing global decline in coal plant development," said Flora Champenois, a research analyst at GEM. "The speed at which projects progressed through permitting to construction in 2022 was extraordinary, with many projects sprouting up, gaining permits, obtaining financing and breaking ground apparently in a matter of months," she added. China's emissions are more than double those of the United States, and though the country's leaders have previously vowed to cut back on carbon, its reliance on coal poses a significant challenge. Throughout 2022, China granted permits for 106 gigawatts of capacity across 82 sites, quadruple the capacity approved in 2021 and equal to starting two large coal power plants each week, said the report. Last year, China experienced its worst heat wave and drought in six decades, dealing a blow to hydropower-reliant provinces — and prompting authorities to turn toward coal instead. To ease the power crunch, coal plants boosted their output, with daily thermal coal consumption hitting a record high in August. 2021 wasn't much better. Though Beijing had initially shut down hundreds of coal mines and pushed the remaining ones to curtail production, nationwide power shortages led the government to order mines to "produce as much coal as possible." That push doesn't appear to be ending anytime soon, with the report authors warning that even China's simultaneous expansion in renewable energy won't be enough to offset the impact. Read the full story here. |
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| Jessie Yeung is the Asia Pacific Writer for CNN Digital Worldwide, based in Hong Kong. |
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Missing Chinese CEO Bao Fan is cooperating in an investigation by "certain authorities in the People's Republic of China," his company said in a statement Sunday. China Renaissance Holdings Limited, of which Bao is the chairman and CEO, said the company has been trying to locate him and ascertain his status since the announcement he disappeared on February 16. "The Board would like to reiterate that the business and operations of the Group are continuing normally," a statement from the company said. "The Company will duly cooperate and assist with any lawful request from the relevant PRC authorities, if and when made." Bao is not the first business executive to go missing in a country where they can suddenly and mysteriously disappear. Real estate tycoon Ren Zhiqiang disappeared for several months after he allegedly spoke out against Chinese leader Xi Jinping in 2020. He was then jailed for 18 years. Anbang chairman Wu Xiaohui was reportedly detained by authorities as part of a government investigation. He too was eventually jailed for 18 years. China Renaissance, an investment bank and private equity firm based in Beijing, added it is monitoring the situation and will release further statements "when appropriate." Bao is known as a veteran deal maker in China's tech industry. He helped broker the 2015 merger between two of the country's leading food delivery services, Meituan and Dianping. Today, the combined company's "super app" platform is ubiquitous in China. Bao started his investment banking career in the late 1990s at Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse and later went on to serve as an adviser to the stock exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen. His team has also invested in US-listed Chinese electric vehicle makers Nio and Li Auto, and helped Chinese internet giants Baidu and JD.com complete their secondary listings in Hong Kong. — From CNN's Ramishah Maruf |
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