Four months’ jail for ex-councillor assistant charged by ICAC with bribery over applications for use of Yuen Long community halls
2023-12-27
A then councillor assistant, charged by the ICAC, was today (December 27) sentenced to four months’ imprisonment at the Tuen Mun Magistrates’ Courts for accepting bribes for assisting a singing club in various applications for the use of community halls, community centres and facilities (the facilities) in Yuen Long, and deceiving the Home Affairs Department (HAD) into granting fee exemptions to the club.
Leung Yu-kuen, 63, former councillor assistant, earlier pleaded guilty to eight charges – five of agent accepting an advantage, contrary to section 9(1)(a) of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance; and three of fraud, contrary to section 16A(1) of the Theft Ordinance. Five similar charges against her were withdrawn.
In sentencing, Magistrate Mr Raymond Wong Kwok-fai remarked that he took a starting point of seven months’ imprisonment for the present case. Having considered the defendant’s guilty plea and background report, her jail term was reduced to four months.
The magistrate ordered the defendant to repay $2,500, being the bribes involved in the case, as restitution to her former employer. She was also ordered to pay over $25,000, which was the fees incurred for using the relevant facilities, to the Government as compensation.
At the material time, the defendant was employed by Chow Wing-kan, Yuen Long District Councillor (2016-2019) as a councillor assistant. Her duties included assisting local organisations in the application for the use of the facilities managed by the Yuen Long District Office (YLDO) of the HAD. Chow did not allow his staff to accept any advantages from any person while carrying out their duties.
According to the guidelines of the YLDO, only eligible organisations, including non-profit-making organisations and offices of Yuen Long District Councillors, could apply for the use of the facilities. These users would be granted fee exemptions if the relevant activities were non-profit making.
The court heard that between April 2017 and November 2018, the defendant made eight applications to the HAD purportedly for various eligible organisations to use the facilities free of charge, while those organisations in fact did not need or would not use them. The applications were approved by the HAD.
Meanwhile, the defendant accepted bribe payments totalling $2,500 from a key member of a singing club for using time slots in five of the above applications with fee exempted. She also caused the key member to present three approval letters to HAD staff, so as to induce the HAD to allow the singing club’s to use the facilities for free.
The ICAC investigation arose from a corruption complaint. Enquiries revealed that the singing club was not an eligible organisation for using the facilities. The HAD would not have approved the eight applications and granted the relevant fee exemptions totalling over $25,000 had it known the singing club was the actual user of the facilities.
The HAD had rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation into the case.
The prosecution was today represented by Senior Public Prosecutor Noelle Aileen Chit, assisted by ICAC officer Winnie Fung.
Leung Yu-kuen, 63, former councillor assistant, earlier pleaded guilty to eight charges – five of agent accepting an advantage, contrary to section 9(1)(a) of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance; and three of fraud, contrary to section 16A(1) of the Theft Ordinance. Five similar charges against her were withdrawn.
In sentencing, Magistrate Mr Raymond Wong Kwok-fai remarked that he took a starting point of seven months’ imprisonment for the present case. Having considered the defendant’s guilty plea and background report, her jail term was reduced to four months.
The magistrate ordered the defendant to repay $2,500, being the bribes involved in the case, as restitution to her former employer. She was also ordered to pay over $25,000, which was the fees incurred for using the relevant facilities, to the Government as compensation.
At the material time, the defendant was employed by Chow Wing-kan, Yuen Long District Councillor (2016-2019) as a councillor assistant. Her duties included assisting local organisations in the application for the use of the facilities managed by the Yuen Long District Office (YLDO) of the HAD. Chow did not allow his staff to accept any advantages from any person while carrying out their duties.
According to the guidelines of the YLDO, only eligible organisations, including non-profit-making organisations and offices of Yuen Long District Councillors, could apply for the use of the facilities. These users would be granted fee exemptions if the relevant activities were non-profit making.
The court heard that between April 2017 and November 2018, the defendant made eight applications to the HAD purportedly for various eligible organisations to use the facilities free of charge, while those organisations in fact did not need or would not use them. The applications were approved by the HAD.
Meanwhile, the defendant accepted bribe payments totalling $2,500 from a key member of a singing club for using time slots in five of the above applications with fee exempted. She also caused the key member to present three approval letters to HAD staff, so as to induce the HAD to allow the singing club’s to use the facilities for free.
The ICAC investigation arose from a corruption complaint. Enquiries revealed that the singing club was not an eligible organisation for using the facilities. The HAD would not have approved the eight applications and granted the relevant fee exemptions totalling over $25,000 had it known the singing club was the actual user of the facilities.
The HAD had rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation into the case.
The prosecution was today represented by Senior Public Prosecutor Noelle Aileen Chit, assisted by ICAC officer Winnie Fung.