Murdered woman feared for her safety

"She told me that, and she told my wife that," the source said.

The Hillsborough Police Department maintains that Stephen Ng is not a "person of interest" in the investigation, however.

Police say the only suspects right now are the two Asian males who allegedly broke into the expansive home at 2545 Butternut Drive. After tying up Priscilla Ng and her boyfriend Andrew Chang with a phone cord, the suspects ransacked the master bedroom where the assaults occurred and got away with an undisclosed amount of cash and jewelry. A white Lexus was also discovered to be missing among the five cars at the home yesterday.

After sustaining severe life-threatening injuries from "blunt trauma and lacerations," Chang was able to struggle free, crawl to a telephone and dial 911. He was taken to a hospital where he underwent emergency surgery. Priscilla Ng was declared dead at the scene.

Police have yet to determine how the

suspects got into the home. When police arrived at the scene, Capt. Mark O'Connor said the "perimeter was secure - all doors and windows were secured and officers had to physically break into the house." The alarm system on the home had not been activated.

Although news of the brutal crime sent shock waves through the affluent Hillsborough neighborhood, at least one person close to Priscilla Ng wasn't floored by the murder.

Jayne Kelly, Priscilla Ng's attorney in the early stages of her divorce, said she wasn't surprised upon learning of Ng's death.

"I wish I could say I was shocked, but I wasn't. If it were to happen to anyone, it would be her," Kelly said. "Whenever you have a lot of money involved, the person's going to be at risk."

The divorce

Stephen Ng owed his ex-wife about $5 million - a figure unrelated to alimony and custody payments, said Lee Schultz, Priscilla Ng's accountant for the past four years. That $5 million settlement was reached June 30 of last year, but Schultz said Stephen Ng reneged on the deal just weeks later.

"Since then he's been exercising whatever legal opportunities he could to overturn the settlement," Schultz said.

Both Schultz and Kelly describe the lengthy divorce as one of the most contentious feuds they've ever witnessed.

"The divorce was pretty hard on her," Schultz said. "Her life was pretty much a living hell."

Stephen Ng still hadn't ponied up the $5 million at the time of Priscilla Ng's death, Schultz said. In the final months before her murder, however, he said life was improving for Priscilla Ng after she was finally able to gain ownership of some family businesses from her ex-husband.

"She wasn't depending on him for money anymore," Schultz said.

Stephen Ng

When Kelly ran into Stephen Ng in court, she said he struck her as being "dour and dark." Kelly said Stephen Ng was expressionless, difficult to read, and came off as "creepy."

"These were people who dealt in world that was unbelievable to me," Kelly said. "They had the type of cash businesses that operated on coins, and where earnings could change dramatically if you changed the price by a cent."

Priscilla Ng warned Kelly to be wary since her ex-husband was very cunning, Kelly said. It would take a lot to dig out the facts, Kelly was told by her client. In trying to extract information out of Stephen Ng during the divorce proceedings, Kelly said she found he was a "master of manipulation."

When Kelly was delivering boxes of documents to Stephen Ng's office, she said he had several men waiting outside to photograph her.

"It was just an intimidation tactic," Kelly said.

In essence, Kelly said he seemed to be the polar opposite of his outgoing, warm ex-wife.

Priscilla Ng

Those who knew Priscilla Ng recall a generous person with a zest for life.

"She was a fun with a sense of humor, very upbeat," Kelly said.

Despite the "horrendously contentious" divorce proceedings, Kelly said Priscilla Ng remained strong and optimistic. Kelly said she never saw her client break down in tears.

"Her attitude was that she was going to take care of herself and her kids," Kelly said.

Priscilla Ng was very close to and protective of her 13-year-old daughter, said Fumi Wong, who knew the family through the Chi Ski Club.

"[Her daughter] was her pride and joy," Wong said.

In the meantime, members of the Chi Ski Club, where Priscilla was an active member, are devastated.

"I'm overwhelmed at what happened," Wong said. "She was the kindest, most generous person. She was a gracious hostess who welcomed us into her home and would let us use her tennis courts."

Members of the ski club have also been worried about Andrew Chang, Wong said, but haven't heard from him yet.

In all the time they spent together, Wong said Priscilla never mentioned the messy divorce proceedings.

Yunmi Choi can be reached by e-mail at yunmi@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 109. What do you think of this story? Send a letter to the editor: letters@smdailyjournal.com.