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A man and three women were fined $10,000 to $16,000 at Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (June 3) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance. One of them was also sentenced to two weeks' imprisonment, suspended for one year.
The courts heard that officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), Home Affairs Department, inspected four suspected unlicensed guesthouses in Tung Choi Street, Reclamation Street and Dundas Street in Mongkok as well as Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui in December last year and February this year. OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented rooms in these guesthouses on an hourly or daily basis.
According to the OLA's records, these guesthouses did not possess licences under the Ordinance on the days of inspection. Therefore, the man and women responsible for managing or operating 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 anyone with information about suspected unlicensed guesthouses to report it to the OLA through the hotline (Tel: 2881 7498), by email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk), by fax (2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the OLA website, or through the mobile application "Hong Kong Licensed Hotels and Guesthouses".
Ends/Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Issued at HKT 16:30
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