Man charged with attempted murder after trying to feed his children rat poison

A 35-year-old man has been charged with one count of attempted murder after he reportedly tried to poison his two young children after their mother left him.

Police laid a holding charge against the man yesterday. The case will be mentioned at the Tuen Mun Magistrates’ Courts today.

At around 1:35am on Monday, a 46-year-old woman called police to say her brother, surnamed Xu, had attacked his eight-year-old daughter in his apartment in Po Tong Ha Tsuen, Tuen Mun, according to a police statement. 

Responding police officers arrived on the scene to find the girl with injuries on her neck. According to Apple Daily, Xu, who had been experiencing marital troubles with his wife, had drunkenly tried to feed their daughter and six-year-old son water laced with rat poison, and choked the girl after she resisted.

Horrified, the children’s aunt took them into another room and locked the door until the police arrived.

The eight-year-old sustained injuries to her neck and was sent to hospital with her brother, who had no superficial injuries.

Xu was arrested on suspicion of child abuse and detained for further enquiries. The case was later reclassified as attempted murder.

Xu, a funeral industry worker from mainland China, has been married to his 30-year-old wife, surnamed Shi, for nine years. Shi, also from mainland China, had reportedly moved out of the family home during the Lunar New Year holidays after getting into “emotional disputes” and arguments over money with her husband. 

According to Bastille Post, Shi was seen leaving the family apartment 10am yesterday and shouted that her husband had been “wronged” to reporters, and that the couple was “very much in love”.

 


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