Ex-employee of US company charged for allegedly accepting HK$17m illegal commissions
2004-12-7
A former employee of a US domestic appliances manufacturer and his wife were today (Tuesday) charged by the ICAC for allegedly accepting at least HK$12.9 million and US$549,000 (about HK$4.3 million) in illegal commissions from suppliers.
Thomas Montanye HOFFMAN, 57, formerly employed by Lasko Products, Inc. (Lasko), and his wife, HUNG Chao-yen, 45, face a total of nine charges –'96 three of conspiracy for an agent to accept advantages, three of agent accepting an advantage, two of aiding, abetting, counselling and procuring an agent to accept advantages, and one of conspiracy to defraud.
The defendants, currently on ICAC bail, will appear in Eastern Magistracy at 9:30 am tomorrow (Wednesday).
Two of the charges allege that HOFFMAN and HUNG had conspired with some staff of two suppliers for HOFFMAN to accept commissions at the rate of 2% of the monthly invoiced amounts settled by Lasko with the suppliers.
The alleged illegal commissions were said to be rewards for HOFFMAN to procure business from Lasko for the suppliers.
HOFFMAN alone faces one count of conspiring with two staff of another supplier for HOFFMAN to accept commissions at the rate of 5% of the monthly invoiced amount settled by Lasko with the supplier for the same reason.
HOFFMAN further faces three counts of accepting commissions totalling about HK$12.9 million and US$549,000 (about HK$4.3 million) from the three suppliers as rewards for procuring business from Lasko.
HUNG alone faces two counts of aiding, abetting, counselling and procuring HOFFMAN to accept illegal commissions from two of the suppliers.
The couple is also charged with one count of conspiring with other persons to defraud the Immigration Department (ID) by falsely representing that Hung was employed as a marketing research manager of one of the suppliers, thereby inducing ID to grant work ing visas to Hung.
The alleged offences took place between May 1993 and February last year.
Thomas Montanye HOFFMAN, 57, formerly employed by Lasko Products, Inc. (Lasko), and his wife, HUNG Chao-yen, 45, face a total of nine charges –'96 three of conspiracy for an agent to accept advantages, three of agent accepting an advantage, two of aiding, abetting, counselling and procuring an agent to accept advantages, and one of conspiracy to defraud.
The defendants, currently on ICAC bail, will appear in Eastern Magistracy at 9:30 am tomorrow (Wednesday).
Two of the charges allege that HOFFMAN and HUNG had conspired with some staff of two suppliers for HOFFMAN to accept commissions at the rate of 2% of the monthly invoiced amounts settled by Lasko with the suppliers.
The alleged illegal commissions were said to be rewards for HOFFMAN to procure business from Lasko for the suppliers.
HOFFMAN alone faces one count of conspiring with two staff of another supplier for HOFFMAN to accept commissions at the rate of 5% of the monthly invoiced amount settled by Lasko with the supplier for the same reason.
HOFFMAN further faces three counts of accepting commissions totalling about HK$12.9 million and US$549,000 (about HK$4.3 million) from the three suppliers as rewards for procuring business from Lasko.
HUNG alone faces two counts of aiding, abetting, counselling and procuring HOFFMAN to accept illegal commissions from two of the suppliers.
The couple is also charged with one count of conspiring with other persons to defraud the Immigration Department (ID) by falsely representing that Hung was employed as a marketing research manager of one of the suppliers, thereby inducing ID to grant work ing visas to Hung.
The alleged offences took place between May 1993 and February last year.