Wu Ho-him, 13, was duped into boarding a van driven by his uncle Wu Wai-fung and accomplice Cheung Chi-keung on April 21 last year.

The two men were found to have killed Ho-him and discarded his body at Fei Ngo Shan in the following hour before calling his family to demand an $8 million ransom.

They were convicted of kidnap and murder by the High Court on August 11, and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Chief Inspector Yam Chiu-fan who headed the investigation team said: "You just cannot imagine how cunning the culprits were. They kept calling the victim's family from telephone booths in various districts and tortured the parents, sending them into hysterics through the horrible and frightening things they were saying, and leaving them doubtful over police help."

Sergeant Ng Ka-cheung added: "It was the ultimate challenge. We were busy with our investigation and at the same time had to make every effort to keep the parents calm so they could squeeze every bit of useful information out of the telephone calls. Every one of us had to maintain utmost team spirit and morale throughout the battle.

"However, as humans, we really felt for Ho-him and his family's painful ordeal, yet we maintained our professionalism, kept our emotions at bay and concentrated on the investigation. That was really hard for every one of us."

And the officers' perseverance paid off, spotting Cheung calling the family in Kowloon City on April 27, and seeing him in contact with Wu just days after.

Woman Senior Inspector Cynthia Tam Sze-yan said: "By then, we were almost certain what was going on, but we could not make an immediate arrest as the victim was in danger."

The calls continuing, the ransom was reduced to $2.4 million, however the kidnappers could not decide on when, where and how to make the payment.

Chief Inspector Yam Chiu-fan said: "We decided we could not wait any longer as the chances of finding the victim alive diminished with time.

"As all they wanted was money, we lured them with that."

Officers convinced a mutual friend of the family and Wu to be a go-between, informing him that a large sum of money would be paid. Wu then used a third party to invite the friend to make the payment in Macau. Officers kept in close liaison with counterparts in Macau and Guangdong as intelligence showed he was a frequent visitor.

Come July 1, the agreed payment date, a woman got the money from the go-between and handed it to Wu who went to Zhuhai to deposit the money into a local bank. He was arrested by Public Security Bureau officers while boarding a bus to Guangzhou and his accomplices in Macau and Zhuhai were also quickly nabbed.

Wu admitted in a caution statement given to Hong Kong officers in Zhuhai that he had kidnapped Ho-him and that Cheung was his partner. He told the officers the youth had died and disclosed the body's location. Cheung was quickly arrested and the victim's remains were found on Kowloon Peak (Fei Ngo Shan).

Informing the family of Ho-him's tragic death was the most heart-breaking task for the officers.

Woman Police Constable Tsang Siu-ming said: "I am a mother so I know how much it hurt the victim's mother. And I could not hold back tears when Ho-him's little brother asked me if he was dead. For every one of us, it still hurts."

Officers' preparation for the June 12 trial was huge, with 83 witnesses and some 200 pieces of evidence.

CIP Yam said a special feature of the case was Wu's caution statement taken with permission from Zhuhai authorities.

"That could probably be the first of its kind accepted by a Hong Kong court. The statement proved vital for our successful prosecution and I would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to Macau and Mainland officers for their help and support in bringing these criminals to justice," he said.

The two-month case saw some 600 Kowloon East Regional Crime Unit, Criminal Intelligence Bureau and other formation officers mobilised. Presiding judge Mr Justice Nguyen complimented the officers on their top job.

The crack Kowloon East team who brought the killers to justice

Officers make the grisly hillside find. Pic: Apple Daily

A suspect is escorted to Kowloon Peak to help officers locate Ho-him's remains. Pic: Ming Pao

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