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Two women and two men were fined from $2,000 to $4,000 at Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (March 6) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance (the Ordinance).
The courts heard that officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), Home Affairs Department, inspected two suspected unlicensed guesthouses in Fuk Lee Street and Argyle Street in Mong Kok in August last year. OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented rooms in these guesthouses on a daily basis.
According to the OLA's records, these guesthouses did not possess valid certificates of exemption or licences under the Ordinance on the days of inspection. Therefore, the woman and the man who were responsible for operating these premises were charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Ordinance.
Furthermore, OLA officers inspected a licensed guesthouse on Nathan Road in Yau Ma Tei in the same month. They posed as lodgers and successfully rented a room in an unlicensed guesthouse in the same building on a daily basis. Therefore, the male operator and the female manager of the premises were charged with contravening section 21(3)(b) of the Ordinance for operating or managing a guesthouse in a premises other than the one indicated in the licence.
A department spokesman stressed that operating or managing an unlicensed guesthouse is a criminal offence and will lead to a criminal record. Upon conviction, the offender is liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and two years' imprisonment.
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 fax (fax number: 2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the website (www.hadla.gov.hk).
Ends/Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Issued at HKT 16:40
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