Duo jailed for Tin Chung Court substandard piling scam on re-trial
2006-11-2
A former senior engineer and a former assistant clerk of works, charged by the ICAC, were today (Thursday) each sentenced to four years and eight months in jail for their involvement in a substandard piling scam at Tin Chung Court in Tin Shui Wai on the f irst day of a re-trial.
Wong Shun-wah, 42, former senior engineer of B+B Construction Company Limited (B+B) (formerly known as Franki Contractors Limited), and To Man-kum, 37, former assistant clerk of works employed by Hsin Yieh Architects and Associates Limited (Hsin Yieh) on behalf of the Housing Authority (HA), toda y pleaded guilty to one joint charge of conspiracy to defraud at the Court of First Instance.
In sentencing, Mr Justice Michael Burrell said it was a serious offence for the defendants to submit falsified piling records to conceal the substandard piling.
But it was fortunate that the scam was discovered before the occupation of the housing units by tenants, otherwise lives might be jeopardized, the judge said.
Hsin Yieh was the architectural consultant appointed by HA to supervise the construction of Blocks 1 and 2 of Tin Chung Court Phase I, a Home Ownership Scheme project of HA in Tin Shui Wai; while B+B was the project's piling contractor.
The case arose from a referral from the Housing Department, which suspected that corruption was involved. Subsequent ICAC enquiries revealed the offence of conspiracy to defraud.
The court heard that between October 1996 and February 1997, the defendants had conspired together to defraud Hsin Yieh and HA by making false representations.
They falsely represented that the lengths of all as-built driven piles for Blocks 1 and 2 of Tin Chung Court of Tin Shui Wai Area 31 Phase I under a contract had purportedly reached the depths as reported in the as-built drawings submitted in the register ed structural engineer report dated July 7, 1997.
They also falsely represented that those piles had purportedly reached the acceptable depths in accordance with the requirements in the contract.
The court heard that a number of piles were constructed at the site of Ting Chung Court. Out of the 32 piles selected for detailed tests, some of them were found to be shortened up to about seven metres.
The incident was uncovered during the summer of 1999 when lifts could not be installed due to excessive tilting of the lift shafts caused by uneven settlements, the court was told.
The defendants were earlier found guilty of the same charge, and were each sentenced to seven years' imprisonment in October 2003. They subsequently appealed to the Court of Appeal, which upheld their convictions in July 2005.
The defendants further appealed to the Court of Final Appeal, which allowed their appeals and ordered a re-trial in May this year.
The prosecution was today represented by prosecuting counsel Peter Callaghan, assisted by ICAC officer Ringo Yung.
Wong Shun-wah, 42, former senior engineer of B+B Construction Company Limited (B+B) (formerly known as Franki Contractors Limited), and To Man-kum, 37, former assistant clerk of works employed by Hsin Yieh Architects and Associates Limited (Hsin Yieh) on behalf of the Housing Authority (HA), toda y pleaded guilty to one joint charge of conspiracy to defraud at the Court of First Instance.
In sentencing, Mr Justice Michael Burrell said it was a serious offence for the defendants to submit falsified piling records to conceal the substandard piling.
But it was fortunate that the scam was discovered before the occupation of the housing units by tenants, otherwise lives might be jeopardized, the judge said.
Hsin Yieh was the architectural consultant appointed by HA to supervise the construction of Blocks 1 and 2 of Tin Chung Court Phase I, a Home Ownership Scheme project of HA in Tin Shui Wai; while B+B was the project's piling contractor.
The case arose from a referral from the Housing Department, which suspected that corruption was involved. Subsequent ICAC enquiries revealed the offence of conspiracy to defraud.
The court heard that between October 1996 and February 1997, the defendants had conspired together to defraud Hsin Yieh and HA by making false representations.
They falsely represented that the lengths of all as-built driven piles for Blocks 1 and 2 of Tin Chung Court of Tin Shui Wai Area 31 Phase I under a contract had purportedly reached the depths as reported in the as-built drawings submitted in the register ed structural engineer report dated July 7, 1997.
They also falsely represented that those piles had purportedly reached the acceptable depths in accordance with the requirements in the contract.
The court heard that a number of piles were constructed at the site of Ting Chung Court. Out of the 32 piles selected for detailed tests, some of them were found to be shortened up to about seven metres.
The incident was uncovered during the summer of 1999 when lifts could not be installed due to excessive tilting of the lift shafts caused by uneven settlements, the court was told.
The defendants were earlier found guilty of the same charge, and were each sentenced to seven years' imprisonment in October 2003. They subsequently appealed to the Court of Appeal, which upheld their convictions in July 2005.
The defendants further appealed to the Court of Final Appeal, which allowed their appeals and ordered a re-trial in May this year.
The prosecution was today represented by prosecuting counsel Peter Callaghan, assisted by ICAC officer Ringo Yung.