Cheung Tze-keung
| Cheung Tze-keung (張子強) | |
|---|---|
| Born |
7 April 1955 Yunan County, Guangdong, China |
| Died | 5 December 1998 (aged 43) Guangzhou, China |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Other names | Big Spender (大富豪) |
| Occupation | Gangster |
| Known for | Kidnapping Walter Kwok and Victor Li |
| Cheung Tze-keung | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 張子強 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 张子强 | ||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Zhāng Ziqiáng |
| Yue: Cantonese | |
| Jyutping | Zoeng1 Zi2-koeng4 |
Cheung Tze-keung (7 April 1955 – 5 December 1998) was a notorious Hong Kong gangster also known as "Big Spender" (Chinese: 大富豪; pinyin: dà fùháo; Jyutping: daai6 fu3 hou4). He was a kidnapper, robber, arms smuggler and was wanted for murder. He was best known for having masterminded the abduction of Walter Kwok and Victor Li, son of Li Ka Shing.
He was sentenced to death by a court in Guangzhou and was executed by shooting on 5 December 1998 (aged 43).
Cheung was born in 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 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.
Cheung partnered with Yip Kai-foon in a series of armed robberies. 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 and the security guard who initially identified him recanted his testimony. His associate Yip, however, was sentenced to 41 years in jail.
...
Wikipedia