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A Hong Kong resident involved in marriages of convenience was sentenced to jail at the District Court today (January 11).
Wong Ching-man, aged 26, pleaded guilty to four counts of conspiracy to defraud and was given an effective sentence of 21 months.
Wong Ching-man was intercepted during an investigation into false marriage cases. She admitted that under the introduction of a middleman, she had entered into false marriages with three Mainlanders in 2006. Before the three false marriages, she had also intended to contract into another false marriage with a Mainlander in 2005, but it was subsequently cancelled by the middleman. Wong said the "marriages" were for monetary reward, ranging from around $5,000 to $13,000, for facilitating her bogus husbands to obtain visit endorsements to enter Hong Kong.
"The Immigration Department has been very concerned about non-Hong Kong residents obtaining stay in Hong Kong by means of marriage of convenience," a department spokesman said. "A special task force has been set up to gather intelligence through various avenues and a thorough investigation will be conducted once evidence comes to light. If there is enough evidence, the department will prosecute offenders. "
"For people who have obtained their residence in Hong Kong by fraudulent means, their Hong Kong identity card and residence status will be declared invalid according to the laws of Hong Kong. They will also be subject to removal back to their place of origin," the spokesman said.
Under the laws of Hong Kong, anyone who commits the offence of conspiracy is liable to prosecution and, upon conviction, the maximum penalty is imprisonment for 14 years.
Ends/Monday, January 11, 2010
Issued at HKT 20:01
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