A registered nurse formerly employed by the Hospital Authority (HA) was sentenced to three months' imprisonment, suspended for three years, at Western Court today (Friday) for cheating about $35,000 in housing allowance from HA by falsely claiming that he was residing in the subsidised property.

Leung Wai-shing, 37, earlier pleaded guilty to two counts of using documents containing false statements to mislead his principal, namely HA, contrary to Section 9(3) of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.

The court heard that Leung was employed by HA as a permanent employee and had served in the Queen Mary Hospital.

In December 1995, Leung submitted an application to the Home Loan Interest Subsidy Scheme (HLISS) Unit of HA for subsidies to finance a property in Kornhill, Quarry Bay that he purchased.

Under the scheme, subsidies would be granted to eligible staff on the condition that they personally lived in the property to be financed.

Without the knowledge that Leung had rented out the property in Kornhill, HA granted the subsidies to Leung based on his application.

In July 1996, HA received complaints alleging that Leung had breached the live-in requirement. One month later, he furnished to HA a false declaration that he had complied with the live-in requirement.

However HA suspended the granting of subsidy to Leung from November 1996 after he failed to respond to various queries raised by HA.

Between February and October 1996, Leung received from HA subsidies of $35,243.02 in total.

In December 1997, when interviewed by two members of a Committee of Inquiry appointed by HA, Leung admitted having made a false declaration on the live-in requirement.

In November last year, HA recovered the full amount of subsidies granted to Leung.

In January this year, HA referred the case to the ICAC on suspicion that the defendant had used false documents to deceive HA over an application for housing allowance.

The prosecution was today represented by ICAC officers Delphine Wu and Nixon Cheung.