Abby Choi’s ex-mother-in-law urged delay in calling police until ransom from ‘kidnappers’

Read the original at South China Morning Post ↗
South China Morning Post · collected 2026-10-14 · by Brian Wong

Quick Summary

Chris Tam, the partner of missing Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi, testified in court that Choi’s ex-mother-in-law, Jenny Li Sui-heung, suggested waiting for ransom demands before contacting the police. Li advised Tam not to report Choi's disappearance immediately, implying it was a kidnapping and that contacting the police would hinder potential negotiations with kidnappers for money. This testimony emerged during the second day of hearings at Hong Kong’s High Court.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-14, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

Chris Tam Fong-chun, the partner of slain Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung, testified in the High Court on Wednesday that Jenny Li Sui-heung, Choi’s ex-mother-in-law, urged him to delay reporting her disappearance to the police. Li suggested waiting for “kidnappers” to contact them and make demands before alerting authorities, implying they might be seeking ransom money. Tam reported that Li told him: “Maybe they just want money. They still haven’t called you. If you report to police now, how can they extort money from you?” This testimony is part of the ongoing investigation into Choi’s disappearance and subsequent death.

Written for “Abby Choi Kidnapping Case” on 2026-10-14, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.15, but all 1 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 78567: attributed speech only · logged 2026-10-14

Story

📰 Abby Choi Kidnapping Case
Crime & Law · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
A fortune, a HK$72m flat and a family feud: inside the Abby Choi murder trial different event · 95%
South China Morning Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 33% hedged 1 of 3 📰 publisher trust 67
“While both articles are about different aspects of the Abby Choi murder trial, they describe distinct events within the trial.”
Slain model Abby Choi called ‘birthing machine’ by ex-father-in-law, court hears different event · 95%
South China Morning Post
⚖️ Leans right 🔴 25% hedged 1 of 4 📰 publisher trust 67
“The articles describe different parts of a larger court proceeding, involving statements made by Choi's partner about both ex-father-in-law and ex-mother-in-law on separate days.”
From Abby Choi to the ‘Hello Kitty’ killing: Hong Kong’s most shocking crimes different event · 90%
South China Morning Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 14% hedged 1 of 7 📰 publisher trust 67
“While both articles discuss aspects of Abby Choi's case, they describe different events: one covers the murder trial of Choi's ex-husband and his brother, while the other focuses on testimony about Choi's disappearance and her ex-mother-in-law's actions.”

Cite this article

Wong, B. (2026, October 14). Abby Choi’s ex-mother-in-law urged delay in calling police until ransom from ‘kidnappers’. South China Morning Post. https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370842/abby-chois-ex-mother-law-urged-delay-calling-police-until-ransom-kidnappers?utm_source=rss_feed

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
6
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 6 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
67/100
South China Morning Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Crime & Law
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-14 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

South China Morning Post · 2243 article(s) · 4 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 4 correction(s)
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Who wrote this

Brian Wong
19 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 “Li Sui-heung said to me: ‘Maybe they just want money.
2026-10-14 · assertive framing · Abby Choi’s ex-mother-in-law urged delay in calling police until ransom from ‘kidnappers’
🔮 Testifying for the first time in the High Court, Tam also said Choi had given his family a false impression that her former in-laws were leading a good life, because she feared her two children from her previous marriage would be disparaged in their new home due to their background.
2026-10-13 · mixed framing · Slain model Abby Choi called ‘birthing machine’ by ex-father-in-law, court hears
🔮 Legal arguments delay trial over murder of Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi again The nine-member jury has been told to return on Monday as lawyers debated legal issues, delaying cross-examination of Choi’s mother The murder trial of Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung has been delayed again while the court addresses legal issues raised by lawyers in the high-profile case. Deputy High Court Judge Brian Keith told the nine-member jury on Friday that the hearing would resume on Monday, once the legal arguments had concluded.
2026-10-09 · assertive framing · Legal arguments delay trial over murder of Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi again
🔮 Abby Choi’s ex-father-in-law a ‘cunning old fox’ who clung to her wealth, court told Socialite’s mother Cheung Yin-fa rejects defence claims that Kwong Kau could afford luxury items, saying he relied on her daughter’s financial support The mother of slain Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung has described her daughter’s former father-in-law as a “cunning old fox” who clung to her family’s fortune, rejecting his lawyer’s suggestion that he bought a Rolls-Royce with money earned from business activities after his retirement.
2026-10-08 · speculative framing · Abby Choi’s ex-father-in-law a ‘cunning old fox’ who clung to her wealth, court told
🔮 The case will be heard again on November 25.
2026-09-29 · mixed framing · Man who allegedly hid 3 pinhole cameras in Hong Kong gym changing rooms out on bail
🔮 High Court discharges jury in Abby Choi murder trial over sick juror, causing delay Judge Brian Keith says court cannot simply replace outgoing juror, according to legal precedent, and new jury will be empanelled on Wednesday The High Court has discharged a recently empanelled jury from the murder trial of slain Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung’s former relatives after one member asked to be excused for health reasons, leading to a delay in proceedings.
2026-09-28 · mixed framing · High Court discharges jury in Abby Choi murder trial over sick juror, causing delay
🔮 Actress accused of breaching contract by dyeing her hair without consent and accepting outside engagements Former Hong Kong television actress Leila Tong Ning has been sued for allegedly breaching her management contract by abandoning her professional duties while suffering from depression and dyeing her hair without her agency’s consent. The High Court writ, filed by agency Tenjinmura Ongaku Limited, also accuses the 44-year-old former Television Broadcasts (TVB) artist of “coercive conduct” and accepting commercial engagements without the company’s approval after their relationship broke down in May 2024.
2026-09-24 · mixed framing · Actress Leila Tong sued over alleged contract breach and ‘manipulative conduct’
🔮 But the High Court heard that the actual number of offences could be much higher.
2026-09-23 · assertive framing · Hong Kong father admits repeatedly raping daughter over a 6-year period
🔮 Choi’s ex-husband, Alex Kwong, 31, his father Kwong Kau, 68, and elder brother Anthony Kwong, 35, face a joint count of murder The High Court will hold the first trial hearing on Monday for parties to sort out preliminary issues.
2026-09-20 · assertive framing · Murder trial of slain Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi’s former relatives to begin
🔮 Hong Kong district councillor remanded in custody after underage sex conviction Sei Chun-hing, 39, set to become first elected officer to face imprisonment for a criminal offence since ‘patriots-only’ electoral overhaul in 2021 A Hong Kong court has remanded a district councillor in custody pending sentence after convicting him of unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl 15 years ago, rejecting his claim that the allegation was politically motivated.
2026-09-14 · mixed framing · Hong Kong district councillor remanded in custody after underage sex conviction
Also by Brian Wong
Slain model Abby Choi called ‘birthing machine’ by ex-father-in-law, court hears
2026-10-13 · South China Morning Post
A fortune, a HK$72m flat and a family feud: inside the Abby Choi murder trial
2026-10-10 · South China Morning Post
Legal arguments delay trial over murder of Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi again
2026-10-09 · South China Morning Post
Abby Choi’s ex-father-in-law a ‘cunning old fox’ who clung to her wealth, court told
2026-10-08 · South China Morning Post
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 19 articles by Brian Wong →

Topics

Hong Kong the High Court

Subjects

Choi PERSON · 2× Hong Kong GPE · 2× Jenny Li Sui-heung PERSON · 2× Abby Choi Tin-fung PERSON · 1× Abby Choi’s PERSON · 1× Chris Tam PERSON · 1× Chris Tam Fong-chun PERSON · 1× Li Sui-heung PERSON · 1× Tam PERSON · 1× the High Court ORG · 1×

Narrative

Choi’s partner, Chris Tam Fong-chun, told the High Court on Wednesday that Jenny Li Sui-heung had tried to paint the influencer’s disappearance as an abduction, saying he should delay calling police until after the perpetrators contacted him.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-14
🔮 “Li Sui-heung said to me: ‘Maybe they just want money.
2026-10-14 · South China Morning Post
Abby Choi’s ex-mother-in-law urged delay in calling police until ransom from ‘kidnappers’ · assertive framing

Claims (6 extracted, 0 hedged)

Abby Choi’s ex-mother-in-law urged delay in calling police until ransom from ‘kidnappers’ Choi’s partner, Chris Tam, tells Hong Kong High Court that Jenny Li Sui-heung tried to paint the model’s disappearance as an abduction asserted
heung → urge → abduction
The former mother-in-law of slain Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung tried to prevent her family from reporting her disappearance to police by suggesting that they wait for her “kidnappers” to issue their demands, a court has heard. asserted
court → slay → demands
Choi’s partner, Chris Tam Fong-chun, told the High Court on Wednesday that Jenny Li Sui-heung had tried to paint the influencer’s disappearance as an abduction, saying he should delay calling police until after the perpetrators contacted him. asserted
perpetrators → tell → him
“Li Sui-heung said to me: ‘Maybe they just want money. asserted
they → say → money
They still haven’t called you. asserted
They → call → you
If you report to police now, how can they extort money from you?’” Tam said on the second day of his testimony. asserted
Tam → report → testimony
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