A defendant accused of trying to help the ex-husband of slain model Abby Choi Tin-fung flee Hong Kong has said she was told to arrange a yacht “as soon as possible” and at any cost, with a fee of HK$300,000 (US$38,500) being quoted at one point.

But Irene Pun Hau-yin denied in Kowloon City Court on Wednesday that she knew she was aiding murder suspect Alex Kwong Kong-chi.

The defendant said she was suspicious of the identity of the man seeking to rent a yacht with the help of Pun’s friend, identified only as Ivy. Pun added that Ivy had approached her on February 24, 2023.

“But being suspicious doesn’t mean someone is a criminal. He might simply have had some difficulties,” she said.

Pun added that she had become close friends with Ivy between 2015 and 2016, adding that she had sometimes stayed at Ivy’s residence in Taipa, Macau. Ivy has been named in case details but is not a defendant in the trial.

The court heard that Ivy had asked Pun to connect her with the other defendant, Lam Shun, who was a yacht rental agent at the time.