Cheung was born in Yulin,
Guangxi province, and moved to
Hong Kong with his family at the age of four. He acquired the nickname "Big Spender" for his love of lavish living. Cheung created a self-image for himself of a "likeable rogue with a heart of gold," and gave his friends and strangers gifts funded from a crime spree that brought in at least HK$2 billion. He was said to be a charming man with a taste for fine food and liquor. He reportedly gave away tens of thousands of dollars to a young street painter when in
Bangkok. Just before he was arrested, he spent a month in a luxury hotel in
Shenzhen during which he showered hotel staff with tips. Even in jail, he reportedly asked wardens for
bird's nest soup. On 22 February 1990, he raided
Kai Tak Airport where he hauled a HK$30 million consignment of
Rolex wristwatches. On 12 July 1991, Cheung returned to Kai Tak, where he robbed a security van, netting HK$167 million, Cheung was arrested in September 1991 and jailed for 18 years for the security van heist. However, he was acquitted and released after appeal in June 1995 when the judge ruled there was no case against Cheung as the evidence was filled with too many inconsistencies His associate Yip, however, was sentenced to 41 years in jail. and on 29 September 1997, he kidnapped
Walter Kwok, chairman of
Sun Hung Kai Properties. and HK$600 million for Walter Kwok. Among his gang members were 17 Hong Kong residents and 14 mainlanders.
Criminal trial Cheung and his gang were tried in connection with a number of crimes including the kidnapping of two Hong Kong tycoons, who remained unnamed in the trial (some reports suggested one victim was
Victor Li). The trial was held in Guangzhou even though the events occurred in Hong Kong. Cheung's lawyer, and other constitutional experts, lobbied the government for the trial to be transferred to Hong Kong, but they were rejected. The Guangzhou Municipal People's Prosecutor formally charged Cheung and his 35 followers with a series of charges relating to "cross-boundary crime including illegal possession, transporting and smuggling explosives and firearms, robbery and kidnapping". The charges, which were denied by Cheung, included the abduction in 1993 for a four million yuan ransom of a
Fujian merchant who had only come forward after Cheung's arrest. The trial began on 8 October 1998. The
South China Morning Post (SCMP) explicitly reported the method of execution as
firing squad, The SCMP is a
newspaper of record for Hong Kong and, as far as judicial transparency is concerned, Chinese courts have historically restricted access to rulings and details of executions, with selective disclosure through controlled domestic channels. Cheung Tze-keung was executed on 5 December 1998 at the age of 43, along with Hong Kong gang members Chin Hon-sau (42) and Chan Chi-ho (36), and mainland members Ma Shangzhong (33) and Liang Hui (32); in
Guangzhou, southern China.
Legal controversy The trial of a Hong Kong resident in Mainland China engendered a crisis of faith in the
judicial independence of Hong Kong, explicit in the
Hong Kong Basic Law that had been implemented after
the United Kingdom transferred sovereignty to the People's Republic of China in 1997. Grave concerns were expressed by the
Hong Kong Bar Association that the Mainland had no jurisdiction over crimes committed in the territory by Hong Kong residents as a matter of Mainland law; the Hong Kong public were concerned that if they commit a crime in Hong Kong, they might have to stand trial in the mainland if arrested there. Officials believed that although a "meagre part" of Cheung's case involved the mainland, it was right he be tried there. Legal experts suggested that Hong Kong courts would not be able to convict in the absence of witness or victims' testimonies or other evidence, even with a full confession, as confessions can be withdrawn. ==Cultural influences==