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Managers fined for illegal guesthouse operations
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     Two women and two men were fined $2,000 to $3,000 at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (June 19) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.

     The courts heard that officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), Home Affairs Department, inspected four suspected unlicensed guesthouses in Shanghai Street in Mong Kok, Jordan Road in Jordan and Chatham Road South in Tsim Sha Tsui in November and December last year. OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented rooms in these four guesthouses on an hourly or 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 two men and two women responsible for managing these premises were charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Ordinance.

     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 by fax (fax number: 2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the website (www.hadla.gov.hk).

Ends/Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Issued at HKT 17:16

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