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Two Hong Kong residents and a Mainland man involved in marriages of convenience received jail sentences after appearing in Sha Tin Magistrates' Court today (June 12).
In the first case, Lai Wai-sung, 50, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to defraud and was given an effective sentence of 16 months.
Lai admitted that he had entered into false marriages with two Mainland women. The first marriage was on the Mainland in December, 2005, while the second marriage took place in Hong Kong later that same month. Both marriages were for money and to facilitate the bogus wives to apply for "90-day visa" endorsements to enter Hong Kong for illegal work and eventually for settlement.
Another Hong Kong man, Cheung Kwok-wai, 33, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud and was jailed for 12 months.
Cheung admitted that he had entered into a false marriage on the Mainland for a reward of $4,000. After the marriage, he accompanied his bogus wife to apply for "90-day visit" endorsement to enter Hong Kong for illegal employment and eventually for settlement.
The last case involved 30-year-old Mainland man, Wang Jianhui who pleaded guilty to two counts of making false representation to an Immigration Officer and one count of conspiracy to defraud. He was given an effective sentence of 16 months.
Wang was intercepted at a control point last month (May) as his marriage with a Hong Kong resident was suspected of being false. He admitted that he had agreed with a middleman to enter into a false marriage at a cost of $20,000. He intended to use the false marriage to acquire a "90-day visit" endorsement to enter Hong Kong and eventually for settlement. In December, 2006, and again last month, he made visits to Hong Kong after the "marriage", falsely declaring to the Immigration control officers that he came to visit his resident wife.
"The Immigration Department has been very concerned with 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.
It is also an offence to make a false representation to immigration officers. Offenders are liable to prosecution and upon conviction to a maximum fine of $150,000 and imprisonment for 14 years.
Ends/Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Issued at HKT 20:04
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