Pakistani charged with killing three Hong Kong prostitutes (Roundup)

Mar 19, 2008, 6:29 GMT

Hong Kong - A 24-year-old Pakistani man was charged Wednesday with murdering three Hong Kong prostitutes over the space of just three days.

Meanwhile, a hunt was continuing for a 'copycat killer' believed to have taken advantage of the murdering spree to strangle to death a fourth prostitute in another part of the city.

The Pakistani suspect, who has not been named, was due to appear in a magistrates court in the city later Wednesday to be charged with three of the four murders, a police spokesman said.

A solo serial killer was initially believed to be responsible for the four killings between Saturday and Monday, which sparked panic among the city's prostitutes.

However, police said the fourth murder could not have been carried out by the 24-year-old suspect who was outside Hong Kong when the fourth victim died.

The Pakistani, a Hong Kong resident, was arrested as he arrived back in Hong Kong by ferry early Tuesday from the neighboring gambling resort of Macau.

Two mobile phones believed to have belonged to two of the victims were found on the suspect when he was arrested, said police, who believe the motive for the killings might have been simple robbery.

The first victim, a 35-year-old prostitute, was found Saturday strangled with a shower hose in the bathroom of her home in the city's Yuen Long district near its border with mainland China.

On Sunday morning, a 30-year-old prostitute died in hospital after being found unconscious in her flat in nearby Tai Po. A third victim, 35, was found in her flat Monday morning, also in Tai Po.

The fourth victim, a 27-year-old prostitute, was found dead in the city's North Point district hours later on Monday afternoon. She is believed to have been died on Sunday when the suspect was in Macau.

Prostitutes in the city of 6.9 million fear a copycat killer might be at large - something police say they cannot rule out - and have called for greater police protection.