************************************************
Two men and a woman were each fined $2,000 at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (December 19) for managing unlicensed guesthouses in Mong Kok and Sham Shui Po respectively.
The courts heard that officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), Home Affairs Department, posed as lodgers and successfully took up accommodation in three unlicensed guesthouses in Portland Street, Tung Choi Street and Ki Lung Street on a daily basis in May 2011 and March and June 2012 respectively. Therefore, the male and female managers of these premises were charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.
A department spokesman stressed that it is a criminal offence to operate or manage an unlicensed guesthouse. Any person who is convicted of operating or managing an unlicensed guesthouse is liable to imprisonment. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a $200,000 fine and imprisonment for two years.
He appealed to the public to report suspected illegal guesthouses to the OLA through the OLA hotline (2881 7498), by email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk) or by fax (fax number: 2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the website (www.hadla.gov.hk).
Ends/Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Issued at HKT 17:40
NNNN
