‘I will always remember that sound,’ Andrew Chiu says of losing ear

A man in a gray shirt is caught on camera biting off part of a district councillor’s ear. Screengrabs via Facebook video and YouTube.
A man in a gray shirt is caught on camera biting off part of a district councillor’s ear. Screengrabs via Facebook video and YouTube.

A pro-democracy district councillor whose ear was bitten off during a fight earlier this month was back on the campaign trail today after being discharged from hospital.

Andrew Chiu, who is defending his seat in the upcoming district council elections, complained of some dizziness from the campaign trail and recounted the experience that led to him being rushed to hospital Nov. 3 following a fight outside the Cityplaza mall in Tai Koo Shing.

“I’ll always remember that sound,” he told Ming Pao of the moment he was bitten, saying that it felt as though a knife had cut his ear.

Chiu, who was discharged yesterday, said he remembered waiting for the ambulance, and that a first responder on site kept patting his face to make sure he stayed awake as blood kept spilling onto his clothes.

Chiu was trying to prevent a man from leaving the scene after he had allegedly attacked several people with a knife when the man bit off a large part of Chiu’s ear.

The suspect was later arrested at the scene, and Chiu had to have surgery to reattach of part his severed ear. It had to be removed again in follow-up surgery due to necrotic tissue, with only part of it salvaged and reattached anew.

https://www.facebook.com/mingpaoinews/posts/2682316798495105?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARAvma-2jXw8JrBjMR2bLQRn02crgStz3QHfRsVwGCF7iEzFdFtPAZ6uw7mb5wRWk7xTwW9Pci5-WDJvGdoVGd6ZdC1Nk5LcgLa5xNeXxnlR9WqGhoxIcoaogNCpaabWUBF5qBB-FRtDjmm00ndVfr0WMfJkYpgc7H15qn-Q9yeCGSqh-492KHsjV3HbzLdUtNtxnfzDEStGDW6FVq0gB_qURg7YF96dXm_53xmg7Dueq5e92zXemCjfwRkjjHUp0UZv1b42vBajeZF9LdgdXSSG8zWQ_bNvlZ23aaz-YRBX_oP_sNu6KUceY-bZmoqrXwG6_57TVZcb4H_eErsOle-TJw&__tn__=-R

Chiu said he didn’t see the viral video of the attack until after his first operation. He recalled feeling calm but fearful as he watched the video.

“I was injured while trying to protect some members of the public, so I can’t be too scared,” he said.

He added that with the outer part of his ear gone, he often hears sound coming from behind, and the sound imbalance causes him to feel dizzy at times.

He needs to take painkillers from time to time and said doctors predict the pain will continue for at least three to four months.

He told the newspaper that he will speak to a lawyer after the district council elections take place Sunday.

Chiu’s alleged attacker, a 49-year-old man called Chen Zhen, has been charged with two counts of wounding with intent over injuries sustained by a 37-year-old man and his 40-year-old wife, and one count of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm for the injury sustained by Chiu. He is remanded into custody until Jan. 3, 2020.



Reader Interactions

Leave A Reply


BECOME A COCO+ MEMBER

Support local news and join a community of like-minded
“Coconauts” across Southeast Asia and Hong Kong.

Join Now
Coconuts TV
Our latest and greatest original videos
Subscribe on