Man killed wife’s lover in crime of passion, jury told

Alexander MinVui Wong waited for his wife’s lover to return home before allegedly bludgeoning the restaurant owner to death, prosecutors alleged.

Wong believed his estranged wife Penny was having an affair with her boss, China Bar owner Yoke Onn Chi, 56, after discovering messages between the pair, prosecutor Mark Gibson KC told the High Court in Melbourne today.

Their marriage had broken down over the previous months due to Wong’s infidelity and Penny had moved to Malaysia just two weeks before Chi was found dead.

Yoke Onn Chi, owner of China Bar, was allegedly murdered at his home in Melbourne. (9 News)

Penny stayed with Chi, also known as Vincent, for about four months after she found out Wong was cheating.

Before leaving Australia, Penny gave Wong her cell phone and promised she wouldn’t talk to Chi. However, Wong soon discovered that Chi had been calling and texting his wife.

Wong then told a friend he wanted to teach Chi “a lesson”.

“It wouldn’t be a problem for me to fight him one-on-one,” Gibson said Wong told his friend.

Wong pleaded not guilty to murder and faced the first day of a jury trial on Tuesday, where the prosecution laid out its circumstantial case against him.

The owner of Northland Shopping Centre’s China Bar was seen alive on CCTV leaving the car park to drive home at around 9.15pm. (9 News)

He allegedly entered Chi’s home via the garage and waited for him to return home after closing his Preston restaurant, before using a rubber mallet to beat him to death on January 31, 2020.

Chi’s son arrived home from work at around 11pm to find his father’s lifeless body lying in a pool of blood at the entrance to his home in Templestowe Lower.

“These sustained beatings, the Crown says, have all the hallmarks of a crime of passion,” Gibson told the jury.

The owner of Northland Shopping Centre’s China Bar was seen alive on CCTV leaving the car park to drive home at around 9.15pm.

Police initially believed a burglar might have attacked Chi, as his wallet and a bag containing the restaurant’s daily snacks were missing. (9 News)

Police initially believed a burglar might have attacked Chi, as his wallet and a bag containing the restaurant’s daily snacks were missing. These items, along with his iPad, have never been found.

Gibson said there were no eyewitnesses who saw Wong attack Chi, but a combination of DNA evidence, CCTV, text messages and witness accounts will be used to prove their case.

“The pieces fit together like pieces of a puzzle to form a pattern of behavior that you can analyze in determining this case,” he told the jury.

The trial before Judge Michael Croucher continues on Wednesday.