Airport Railway contractor admits substandard piling scam
2000-9-18
The piling work contractor of the Airport Railway Hong Kong Station Northern Site project (Northern Site) admitted at District Court today (Monday) that he had instructed a number of persons to construct substandard bored piles at the site.
Judge Alan Wright adjourned the case to tomorrow for sentence, and remanded the defendant in ICAC custody.
Hui Wai-chung, 38, proprietor of On Foundation Engineering Company (On Foundation), left Hong Kong before the ICAC investigation commenced.
He was arrested by the Federal Bureau Investigator in New York on ICAC's behalf in May this year, and agreed to waive extradition proceedings and return to Hong Kong to face prosecution.
On Foundation was a piling contractor of the Northern Site project. The contract value for the bored pile works amounted to over $100 million.
Hui today pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to defraud.
The charge alleged him of conspiring with shareholder of Pak Kee Transportation Company Limited Shek Kwok-wing, On Foundation superintendent Ng Chun-hing, engineer Kwok Chi-hung, foreman Leung Yee-tai and So Bor-shun, project manager of B+B Construction C ompany Limited Tam Tung-kee, engineer Wong Ka-wing and Cheng Siu-ming and others to defraud the developer and contractors of Northern Site over the foundation works of the site between May and November 1997.
The contractors were Central Waterfront Property Development Limited, Aoki Corporation and Bachy Soletanche Group Limited.
The court heard that Hui had dishonestly not constructed the bored piles for the foundation works of the Northern Site in accordance with the site plan approved by the Buildings Department, and caused the developer and contractors to pay for work not comp leted in compliance with the plan.
It was later revealed that of the 87 bored piles constructed by On Foundation, 83 were one meter to 15 meters shorter than the prescribed length. Substantial reconstruction of the foundation, which ran into millions of dollars, had to be carried out subs equently.
Hui was also charged with one count of offering $50,000 in bribes to Wong Ka-wing in November 1997. The court today ordered to leave this charge on file.
Apart from Hui, 12 other people, including an industrial diver, a surveyor, three engineers, one project manager, two foremen, a superintendent, a transportation company shareholder and two other subcontractors had been prosecuted in the piling scam, and all were convicted. They received prison terms ranging from one year to three years and eight months.
The prosecution was today represented by Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Kevin Zervos, assisted by ICAC officer Irene Kong.
Judge Alan Wright adjourned the case to tomorrow for sentence, and remanded the defendant in ICAC custody.
Hui Wai-chung, 38, proprietor of On Foundation Engineering Company (On Foundation), left Hong Kong before the ICAC investigation commenced.
He was arrested by the Federal Bureau Investigator in New York on ICAC's behalf in May this year, and agreed to waive extradition proceedings and return to Hong Kong to face prosecution.
On Foundation was a piling contractor of the Northern Site project. The contract value for the bored pile works amounted to over $100 million.
Hui today pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to defraud.
The charge alleged him of conspiring with shareholder of Pak Kee Transportation Company Limited Shek Kwok-wing, On Foundation superintendent Ng Chun-hing, engineer Kwok Chi-hung, foreman Leung Yee-tai and So Bor-shun, project manager of B+B Construction C ompany Limited Tam Tung-kee, engineer Wong Ka-wing and Cheng Siu-ming and others to defraud the developer and contractors of Northern Site over the foundation works of the site between May and November 1997.
The contractors were Central Waterfront Property Development Limited, Aoki Corporation and Bachy Soletanche Group Limited.
The court heard that Hui had dishonestly not constructed the bored piles for the foundation works of the Northern Site in accordance with the site plan approved by the Buildings Department, and caused the developer and contractors to pay for work not comp leted in compliance with the plan.
It was later revealed that of the 87 bored piles constructed by On Foundation, 83 were one meter to 15 meters shorter than the prescribed length. Substantial reconstruction of the foundation, which ran into millions of dollars, had to be carried out subs equently.
Hui was also charged with one count of offering $50,000 in bribes to Wong Ka-wing in November 1997. The court today ordered to leave this charge on file.
Apart from Hui, 12 other people, including an industrial diver, a surveyor, three engineers, one project manager, two foremen, a superintendent, a transportation company shareholder and two other subcontractors had been prosecuted in the piling scam, and all were convicted. They received prison terms ranging from one year to three years and eight months.
The prosecution was today represented by Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Kevin Zervos, assisted by ICAC officer Irene Kong.