The deadly rift between Choi and the Kwongs was sparked not by personal grievances, but by a high-stakes real estate transaction. In 2019, Choi purchased a luxury property in Kadoorie Hill, an affluent enclave in Ho Man Tin historically favored by celebrities and tycoons. To circumvent a 15% first-time homebuyer stamp duty, Choi, who already owned other real estate, registered the deed under the name of her former father-in-law, Kwong Kau. Choi paid the entire purchase price of roughly HK$72.8 million ($9.3 million) in cash, including legal fees and mortgage settlements.
By late 2022, Choi sought to liquidate the Kadoorie Hill property as an investment move, offering to relocate the Kwong family to another high-end residence in Olympic Station. Kwong Kau vehemently objected. Legal testimony and witness statements from Choi’s associates revealed that Kwong Kau threatened her life during a heated confrontation, reportedly stating that if she sold the property without his permission, he would "kill her and leave her penniless."
Choi retained commercial litigation attorneys to prove beneficial ownership through clear paper trails showing her origin-of-funds accounts. Realizing that the court would inevitably strip him of the legal title, Kwong Kau leveraged a critical legal loophole: Choi’s union with Chris Tam had never been formally registered under Hong Kong’s Marriage Ordinance. Under Hong Kong's Intestates' Estates Ordinance, if Choi died without a legal will, her vast estate, estimated at over HK$100 million ($12.8 million), would automatically bypass Chris Tam and pass directly to her four biological children. Because two of those children were minors fathered by Alex Kwong, Kwong Kau calculated that his family could assume legal custody of the children and regain control of Choi's assets.
