Ex-clerk gets 7 years for misappropriating over $11m company funds
2007-5-31
A former clerk of a printing company, charged by the ICAC, was today (Thursday) sentenced to an imprisonment of seven years at District Court for misappropriating more than $11.6 million from her employer by forging cheque payments.
Idy Yick Lin-lin, 42, former clerk of Sang Yau Luen Printing Company (Sang Yau Luen), was earlier found guilty of one count of fraud.
In sentencing, Judge Yau Chi-lap said a custodial sentence must be imposed on the defendant as she had shown no remorse and the fraud lasted a period of six years.
The judge added that he could only mete out a maximum jail term of seven years to the defendant under the District Court Ordinance, despite that the starting point for sentence in this case should be more than eight years.
The case arose from a corruption complaint. Subsequent ICAC enquiries revealed the fraud offence.
The court heard that at the time of the offence, the defendant used her personal bank accounts to settle public utilities expenses of Sang Yau Luen, such as electricity and water.
For reimbursement, the defendant would prepare cheques for signature of the sole proprietor of Sang Yau Luen.
Between April 1, 1998 and November 30, 2004, the defendant prepared 215 Sang Yau Luen cheques for over $11.6 million in total, purportedly to settle sundries expenses or make reimbursement to herself.
The payee of those cheques was either left blank or made payable to the defendant.
As the sole proprietor of Sang Yau Luen could not read English, he signed the cheques after matching the amounts in figures with the respective supporting documents.
All the 215 Sang Yau Luen cheques were deposited into the personal bank accounts of the defendant, those of her husband or their joint accounts.
The court heard that out of the 215 cheques, 156 cheques amounting to over $7.9 million were purportedly issued to settle sundries expenses of Sang Yau Luen.
However, the defendant had altered and inflated the amounts for those cheques after the sole proprietor of Sang Yau Luen signed them.
Out of the remaining 59 cheques, 26 were recorded by the defendant as payments to various suppliers of Sang Yau Luen. But those suppliers confirmed that they did not receive the payments. As for the remaining 33 cheque payments, the defendant did not re cord them in the company ledger as genuine expenses.
As a result of the fraudulent scam, the defendant misappropriated a total of over $11.6 million from her employer, the court was told.
The prosecution was today represented by prosecuting counsel Newman Wong, assisted by ICAC officers Vivian Lee and Wesley Wu.
Idy Yick Lin-lin, 42, former clerk of Sang Yau Luen Printing Company (Sang Yau Luen), was earlier found guilty of one count of fraud.
In sentencing, Judge Yau Chi-lap said a custodial sentence must be imposed on the defendant as she had shown no remorse and the fraud lasted a period of six years.
The judge added that he could only mete out a maximum jail term of seven years to the defendant under the District Court Ordinance, despite that the starting point for sentence in this case should be more than eight years.
The case arose from a corruption complaint. Subsequent ICAC enquiries revealed the fraud offence.
The court heard that at the time of the offence, the defendant used her personal bank accounts to settle public utilities expenses of Sang Yau Luen, such as electricity and water.
For reimbursement, the defendant would prepare cheques for signature of the sole proprietor of Sang Yau Luen.
Between April 1, 1998 and November 30, 2004, the defendant prepared 215 Sang Yau Luen cheques for over $11.6 million in total, purportedly to settle sundries expenses or make reimbursement to herself.
The payee of those cheques was either left blank or made payable to the defendant.
As the sole proprietor of Sang Yau Luen could not read English, he signed the cheques after matching the amounts in figures with the respective supporting documents.
All the 215 Sang Yau Luen cheques were deposited into the personal bank accounts of the defendant, those of her husband or their joint accounts.
The court heard that out of the 215 cheques, 156 cheques amounting to over $7.9 million were purportedly issued to settle sundries expenses of Sang Yau Luen.
However, the defendant had altered and inflated the amounts for those cheques after the sole proprietor of Sang Yau Luen signed them.
Out of the remaining 59 cheques, 26 were recorded by the defendant as payments to various suppliers of Sang Yau Luen. But those suppliers confirmed that they did not receive the payments. As for the remaining 33 cheque payments, the defendant did not re cord them in the company ledger as genuine expenses.
As a result of the fraudulent scam, the defendant misappropriated a total of over $11.6 million from her employer, the court was told.
The prosecution was today represented by prosecuting counsel Newman Wong, assisted by ICAC officers Vivian Lee and Wesley Wu.