Virtual reality could help establish the cause of death of a university student who fell from a car park last year while police were dispersing protesters nearby.

The inquest into Chow Tsz-lok’s death may become the first Hong Kong legal case to make use of technology to determine the circumstances surrounding an event. The Coroner’s Court will begin its hearing on Nov. 16, just over a year after Chow’s fatal fall, and is scheduled to take five weeks to examine the evidence and witnesses.

The new VR system will simulate the scene by incorporating various closed-circuit television clips, according to a source familiar with the case. It will save the jurors from having to visit the site.

On Wednesday, a pretrial hearing was held behind closed doors, during which the court was told that a five-member jury would hear from about 60 witnesses, including first-aid volunteers at the scene, police officers, firefighters, paramedics, doctors and forensic pathologists.

Chow, a second-year computer science undergraduate at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, fell from a carpark in Tseung Kwan O on Nov. 4. He suffered from brain injuries and died four days later.

The proximity of his death to a site of confrontation between the police and pro-democracy protesters has led to speculation that foul play might be involved. Last week, dozens of people marked 10 months since his death outside the car park amid a heavy police presence.

Chief Inspector Mok Tsz-wai said outside court that about 20 police officers would provide testimony in the hope of “clarifying all the facts.” He called for people with knowledge of the case or footage from car cameras to contact the police.

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