5 Chilling Facts About The Hello Kitty Homicide: The 1999 Case And The Killer's Shocking Recent Fate
The "Hello Kitty Homicide" remains one of Hong Kong's most infamous and stomach-churning true crime cases, a brutal saga that transcended local news to become a global urban legend. What began as a dispute over a relatively small debt culminated in an act of unimaginable cruelty, torture, and dismemberment in a Tsim Sha Tsui apartment in 1999, leaving a permanent scar on the city's history. The case is particularly notorious for the gruesome detail that the victim's skull was found sewn inside a large Hello Kitty mermaid doll, a macabre juxtaposition of innocence and horror.
As of December 18, 2025, the case continues to draw attention, not just for the horrific details of the original crime, but for the subsequent lives of the perpetrators after their release from prison. The most recent and disturbing update involves one of the convicted men, whose freedom was short-lived, proving that the shadow of the 1999 crime still looms large over their lives and the public consciousness.
The Victims and The Perpetrators: A Complete Profile List
The case involved one victim and three primary perpetrators, all of whom were convicted of manslaughter due to the inability of the prosecution to definitively prove the exact cause of death after the dismemberment. The original murder and dismemberment took place at an apartment at 31 Granville Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, a location that has since become synonymous with the tragedy.
Victim Profile: Fan Man-yee
- Name: Fan Man-yee (樊敏儀)
- Age at Death: 23 years old
- Occupation: Nightclub hostess (also described as a call girl)
- Background: Fan Man-yee had a difficult life, reportedly being abandoned by her family and living in an orphanage until the age of 15. She was a young mother who worked in the nightlife industry to support herself and her daughter.
- The Motive: She was abducted and tortured over a HK$20,000 debt she allegedly owed to Chan Man-lok.
Perpetrators' Profiles
The three men were tried together and found guilty of manslaughter, false imprisonment, and preventing the lawful burial of a body.
- Chan Man-lok (陳文樂)
- Age at Conviction: 34 (in 2000)
- Role: The ringleader to whom the victim owed money.
- Sentence: Life imprisonment, with a recommendation of a minimum of 20 years before parole consideration.
- Leung Shing-cho (梁勝祖)
- Age at Conviction: 27 (in 2000)
- Role: Co-conspirator and participant in the torture.
- Sentence: Originally life imprisonment, later reduced on appeal to 18 years.
- Leung Wai-lun (梁偉倫)
- Age at Conviction: 20 (in 2000)
- Role: Co-conspirator and participant in the torture.
- Sentence: Life imprisonment, with a recommendation of a minimum of 20 years before parole consideration.
The Unspeakable Horror: Details of Fan Man-yee's Final Weeks
Fan Man-yee was held captive in the Granville Road apartment for approximately a month, enduring continuous and systematic torture at the hands of the three men, who were often high on drugs, including methamphetamines. The case details presented during the six-week trial were so disturbing they shocked the Hong Kong public and legal community alike.
The torture inflicted upon Fan Man-yee was beyond sadistic. She was subjected to brutal physical abuse, including being beaten with iron bars, burned with hot plastic and cigarettes, and forced to eat human excrement. The lack of food, water, and medical attention, combined with the extreme physical and psychological torment, eventually led to her death.
A key piece of evidence came from a 14-year-old girl, the girlfriend of one of the men, who witnessed the horrific events and eventually confessed to a social worker, leading police to the apartment. Upon entering the flat, police found a scene of unimaginable horror, with the victim's remains dismembered and scattered in bags. Her severed skull was discovered inside a large, stuffed Hello Kitty mermaid doll, a detail that solidified the case's gruesome and unforgettable nickname.
The conviction of manslaughter instead of murder was a point of controversy. The jury concluded that the dismemberment of the body made it impossible to determine a definitive cause of death, which prevented a murder conviction under Hong Kong law at the time. This legal nuance meant the men were convicted for the torture and the subsequent death, rather than pre-meditated murder.
Life After Prison: The Shocking Re-Conviction of a Killer
The initial sentences for the three men were life imprisonment for Chan Man-lok and Leung Wai-lun, and 18 years for Leung Shing-cho. Given the crime occurred in 1999, the possibility of parole and release has been a recurring public concern for years. The most significant and recent update pertains directly to one of the convicted men.
Leung Shing-cho’s Brief Freedom
Leung Shing-cho, who received the shortest sentence after a successful appeal, was eventually released from prison after serving approximately 11 years. However, his return to society was marked by further criminal activity.
In a shocking development that brought the case back into the headlines, Leung Shing-cho was arrested and subsequently re-convicted. He was sentenced to 12 months in jail for indecently assaulting a 10-year-old girl. The incident occurred after his release, confirming for many critics that the men convicted in the Hello Kitty Homicide case remained a danger to the public.
The Status of Chan Man-lok and Leung Wai-lun
For the other two perpetrators, Chan Man-lok and Leung Wai-lun, who received life sentences with a minimum of 20 years, their parole eligibility would have begun around 2019. While there have been no widely publicized, confirmed reports of their release or re-conviction in recent years, the public remains vigilant. The court's original justification for the life sentence on two of the men was the belief that they "would continue to be a danger to society," a sentiment reinforced by the subsequent actions of their co-conspirator.
The Lingering Legacy of Granville Road
The Hello Kitty Homicide case had a profound and lasting impact on Hong Kong. It exposed a dark underbelly of the city's nightlife and drug culture, prompting widespread public soul-searching.
The apartment building on Granville Road where the crime took place became a notorious "haunted" location, a grim landmark in the bustling Tsim Sha Tsui district. The sheer brutality of the crime, coupled with the unsettling detail of the Hello Kitty doll, ensured the case's place in the annals of global true crime. The periodic updates, such as the re-conviction of one of the killers, serve as a stark reminder of the long-term consequences of this horrifying 1999 event. Entities and keywords associated with the case—including the Tsim Sha Tsui flat, manslaughter conviction, Fan Man-yee's torture, and the Hello Kitty doll—continue to be discussed in the context of criminal justice, parole, and the nature of evil.
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