A Hong Kong couple have been convicted of murdering their five-year-old daughter in 2018, ending a month-long trial of a high-profile child abuse case that has shocked the city.
The girl’s 29-year-old father and 30-year-old mother face up to life imprisonment, per the court verdict handed down Tuesday. Neither had prior convictions.
The harrowing case of abuse made local headlines in January 2018, when the girl was rushed unconscious to a hospital. She died shortly upon arrival, her body covered in over 130 wounds that looked to have been inflicted by scissors or a cane.
An autopsy showed that the girl died of a bacteria infection, which her immune system—weakened from physical abuse—was unable to fight.
According to prosecutors, the 5-year-old was frequently starved and beaten by her parents. She was found to have deep bruises on her head, a result of her father repeatedly throwing her into the air and hitting the ceiling while “playing” with the child.
In court Tuesday, prosecutors showed drawings that the girl had made in her kindergarten class, one of which appeared to show an adult standing over a pool of blood on the floor.
The girl’s eight-year-old brother suffered similar abuse. He was returned to his paternal grandmother’s care, according to the South China Morning Post.
Their 56-year-old step grandmother, who lived with them, was found guilty of two counts of child cruelty.
The three defendants will be sentenced next Tuesday.
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