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A man was fined $15,000 at Kowloon City Magistratesˇ¦ Court today (July 2) and two women were each fined $6,000 for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.
The court heard that the officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), Home Affairs Department, inspected a suspected guesthouse in Dundas Street, Mong Kok, last December. Signboards of guesthouse were found on the external wall, common area of the building, public pavement outside the building and outside the premises. Rooms with sleeping accommodation and guests were found at the premises.
The man admitted to being the operator of the guesthouse, while two women said they were the managers. They said that guesthouse rooms were rented on a daily or hourly basis. According to OLAˇ¦s record, the premises did not have a valid certificate of exemption on inspection day, nor a licence as required under Section 5(2) of the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance. The three were charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.
A department spokesman said it was a criminal offence to operate unlicensed guesthouses and that enforcement action would continue to be taken against them to ensure the safety of lodgers. He also appealed to the public to report unlicensed guesthouses to the OLA on 2881 7498.
Ends/Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Issued at HKT 15:00
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