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Two Hong Kong residents who employed illegal workers have been jailed after appearing in the Sha Tin Magistrates' Court on January 9.
Lee Siu-ping, 55, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice and was jailed for six months.
Hung Tsu-pei, 60, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice and two counts of being the employer of persons not lawfully employable. He was sentenced to an effective jail term of 12 months.
In January 2008, an Immigration Task Force raided a restaurant in Mong Kok and arrested two illegal workers. The manager of the restaurant revealed that those two illegal workers were employed by a cleaning company set up by Lee. The task force then raided the registered address of Lee¡¦s company where two forged Hong Kong Permanent Identity Cards and 10 copies of Hong Kong Permanent Identity Cards were found. Hung was arrested on the spot and Lee was arrested later that day.
Both defendants admitted that they had thought up the conspiracy in 2005. Hung offered Lee money to set up a cleaning company employing illegal workers to work at local restaurants, and Lee would bear all legal responsibilities as an employer whenever those illegal workers were arrested. Hung was in fact the person who was responsible for the daily operation including recruitment of illegal workers.
The Immigration Department warned that it was an offence to employ people who were not lawfully employable. The maximum penalty is a fine of $350,000 and imprisonment for three years.
Ends/Monday, January 12, 2009
Issued at HKT 18:58
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