Former manager jailed for covering up non-compliant steel bars at Yuen Chau Kok HOS project
2001-11-28
A former manager of a steel supplier was today (Wednesday) sent to jail for five months for forgery over non-compliant steel bars at the construction site of a Housing Authority (HA) Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) project in Yuen Chau Kok, Shatin.
Li Chun-tat, 43, formerly employed by Long & Wide Development Limited (Long & Wide), earlier pleaded guilty at Shatin Court to one count of conspiracy to forge a weighing docket to cover up the failure to remove the non-compliant steel bars from the site.
Magistrate Mr Frankie Yiu today remarked that an immediate custodial sentence was warranted since the offence was serious and the scheme was premeditated.
The magistrate added that he had taken into account the defendant's guilty plea, clear records and co-operation with the ICAC.
The case arose from a corruption complaint, alleging that Paul Y site staff had bribed employees of the Housing Department and the steel supplier to connive at the use of substandard steel bars at the construction site.
ICAC enquiries uncovered the scam, while the corruption allegation was not substantiated.
The court heard that Paul Y-ITC General Contractors Limited (Paul Y) was appointed by HA as the contractor for the superstructure construction of the project.
On October 26, 1999, Long & Wide supplied steel bars of three different sizes, including Y12 steel bars, to the site. The steel bars were purchased from Kwong Fai Steel (HK) Limited (Kwong Fai).
On November 3, 1999, an HA-appointed laboratory conducted tests on Y12 steel bar samples, which exceeded the required standard of mass density, thereby affecting the tensile test.
Paul Y decided to remove the whole batch of Y12 steel bars, weighing 25.47 tons in total, from the site, after being informed by HA of the test results.
On November 6, 1999, part of the rejected steel bars weighing 17.68 tons were returned to the godown and recorded in a weighing docket of Long & Wide.
On request, Li instructed godown clerk Lam Ki-to to produce an additional bogus weighing docket of Kwong Fai to falsely represent the return of the remaining 7.79 tons of rejected steel bars, so as to enable Long & Wide to receive payment from Paul Y.
On November 10, 1999, Paul Y reported to HA that the entire batch of non-compliant steel bars were removed from the site, with photocopies of the two weighing dockets submitted as proof.
The prosecution was today represented by Allan To on a fiat, assisted by ICAC officer Winnie Lee.
Li Chun-tat, 43, formerly employed by Long & Wide Development Limited (Long & Wide), earlier pleaded guilty at Shatin Court to one count of conspiracy to forge a weighing docket to cover up the failure to remove the non-compliant steel bars from the site.
Magistrate Mr Frankie Yiu today remarked that an immediate custodial sentence was warranted since the offence was serious and the scheme was premeditated.
The magistrate added that he had taken into account the defendant's guilty plea, clear records and co-operation with the ICAC.
The case arose from a corruption complaint, alleging that Paul Y site staff had bribed employees of the Housing Department and the steel supplier to connive at the use of substandard steel bars at the construction site.
ICAC enquiries uncovered the scam, while the corruption allegation was not substantiated.
The court heard that Paul Y-ITC General Contractors Limited (Paul Y) was appointed by HA as the contractor for the superstructure construction of the project.
On October 26, 1999, Long & Wide supplied steel bars of three different sizes, including Y12 steel bars, to the site. The steel bars were purchased from Kwong Fai Steel (HK) Limited (Kwong Fai).
On November 3, 1999, an HA-appointed laboratory conducted tests on Y12 steel bar samples, which exceeded the required standard of mass density, thereby affecting the tensile test.
Paul Y decided to remove the whole batch of Y12 steel bars, weighing 25.47 tons in total, from the site, after being informed by HA of the test results.
On November 6, 1999, part of the rejected steel bars weighing 17.68 tons were returned to the godown and recorded in a weighing docket of Long & Wide.
On request, Li instructed godown clerk Lam Ki-to to produce an additional bogus weighing docket of Kwong Fai to falsely represent the return of the remaining 7.79 tons of rejected steel bars, so as to enable Long & Wide to receive payment from Paul Y.
On November 10, 1999, Paul Y reported to HA that the entire batch of non-compliant steel bars were removed from the site, with photocopies of the two weighing dockets submitted as proof.
The prosecution was today represented by Allan To on a fiat, assisted by ICAC officer Winnie Lee.