SUPERIOR Court Associate Judge Kenneth L. Govendo has not set a bail amount for the release of a man accused of stabbing another man several times on New Year’s Eve. The victim later died from injuries.
Lingyang Kong, 34, appeared before Judge Govendo on Monday for a bail hearing and was charged with 2nd degree murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, and assault & battery.
The court appointed Assistant Public Defender Emily Thompson to represent Kong and Dennis Lee as interpreter. Assistant Attorney General Steve Kessel appeared for the government.
After the hearing, Kong was remanded to the custody of the Department of Corrections and was ordered to return to court on Jan. 13 at 1:30 p.m. for a preliminary hearing and on Feb. 7 at 9 a.m. for an arraignment.
Kong’s co-defendant, his girlfriend, Lyuqin Yi, appeared at a separate bail hearing on Tuesday morning, Variety learned.
Chief prosecutor Chester Hinds in a statement said, “She is the girlfriend of the defendant and hid the weapon after the incident. She will be charged as an accessory after the fact.”
Yi’s cash bail amount was set at $25,000 by Judge Govendo, according to an arrest warrant issued against her.
Kong waived his rights to have an attorney present and agreed to provide a statement to the police.
Through a translator, Kong said, the victim, Zhongyi Li, invited him for some drinks at a bar in Garapan.
At the bar, Kong said he got into an argument with the victim’s girlfriend. Kong said he left the bar, but the couple followed him outside.
He said the victim’s girlfriend continued to yell at him, and as she did so the victim shoved him.
As their argument escalated, Kong’s girlfriend arrived and got into an argument with the victim’s girlfriend.
Kong and Yi then decided to leave.
Kong said as they were walking to Smile Massage, the victim came from behind and pushed him, causing Kong to fall.
Kong said the victim mounted on top of him, and punched him several times.
Kong said his girlfriend, Yi, tried to help him get up on his feet but the victim, Zhongyi Li, then assaulted both of them, Kong added.
Kong said he got angry and reached for the pocket knife in his back-right pocket. He unfolded the knife and thrusted it toward the victim. He said he noticed that the knife got stuck in the body of the victim.
Kong said he tried to thrust the knife again but not as hard.
He told police that he cannot recall if the second strike hit the victim, but he said he just decided to stop there after seeing the victim’s shirt soaked with blood. He said he also felt the warmth of the blood on his hand.
According to Kong, his girlfriend told him to run, but he told her that he would not run.
As they approached Smile Massage, a police vehicle pulled in front of him. Kong said he later realized that the knife was no longer in his pocket and assumed that his girlfriend took the knife as she was walking fast in a different direction as soon as the police arrived.
Later, police learned from Kong’s girlfriend, Yi, that he saw the knife sticking out of Kong’s back pocket and pulled it out and hid it behind the shutter of a business establishment.
Police located the small black folding knife behind a typhoon shutter — it was folded out with the blade exposed and with blood stains.
The victim, according to police, was found on the concrete floor curled up in a fetal position at the Paseo De Marianas near Hanamitsu Massage gasping for air.
As bystanders attempted to apply pressure on the wound, a responding police officer observed a laceration on the backside of the victim who was then transported to the Commonwealth Health Center for further treatment. He was unresponsive for a brief moment, but was revived and admitted to the intensive care unit.
Police said the victim suffered from multiple injuries to his upper body with lacerations on his head, neck, and upper torso and puncture wounds to his left rib cage.
The victim succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead on Jan. 1, 2022, at 6:35 a.m. by Dr. Elizabeth Culp, due to multi-organ failure.
Lingyang Kong
Lyuqin Yi
