HKSAR v. WONG YUK KUEN

DCCC1382/2011

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 1382 OF 2011

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Reasons for Sentence

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1. Defendant, you have pleaded guilty to two charges of dealing with property known or believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offence, contrary section 25(1) and (3) of the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance, Cap.455, this offence otherwise commonly known as money laundering.

2. In Charge 1, between 19 August 2009 and 25 September 2009, you knowingly had grounds to believe that property, namely a total of $1,518,494.57, represented the proceeds of an indictable offence and dealt with that property.

3. In respect of the 2nd charge, that is on 25 September 2009, you knowingly had grounds to believe the property, namely $245,876.57, were in whole or in part, directly or indirectly represented the proceeds of an indictable offence and dealt with that property.

4. You were arrested for these offences on 9 February 2010. Under caution, you stated for the offence of money laundering that you had met a male with a name of Ah Ko at a disco in Shenzhen in around 2007 and he had requested you to lend your bank accounts to him for transferring “black money”, and each time you would receive $10,000 to $30,000 cash as a reward, so you agreed to do so.

5. After the deposits were made into your bank accounts, you were instructed by Ah Ko or an unknown male who accompanied Ah Ko to withdraw moneys from the bank accounts.  It was your evidence that you did not know the source of remittance but you believed that some of these remittances were crime proceeds. 

6. In respect of Charge 1, that amount of about $1.5 million was deposited into your HSBC account between August and 26 September 2009. In respect of Charge 2, an amount of $200,000-odd was deposited into your HSB account on 25 September 2009. That deposit of $200,000-odd was deposited by a person called Cao Jun-xi, who was deceived and induced to remit funds into the bank account as a result of an investment and lottery fraud. It is your evidence under caution that you did not know this victim Mr Cao.

7. It is also part of the Summary of Facts that the fund flow shows that the deposits into these accounts were withdrawn in cash, all at ATM, or transferred within one or two days of the deposits.  I am informed by both the prosecution and your counsel Mr Tse that the bank itself had closed your HSBC account in September 2009.  That would probably have been because you had just recently opened the account in July 2009 and there was a flurry of deposits and withdrawals and therefore suspected money laundering activities. 

8. Your counsel Mr Tse Hon-yuen has mitigated fully and thoroughly on your behalf this morning and I have taken into account all that he has had to say.

9. You are 30 years of age and born in Hong Kong.  You are now a divorcee and have three children aged 12, 13 and 2.  Your eldest two children live with your first husband and your youngest daughter from another man lives with you.  I am informed that he is no longer your partner and you live with your parents.  You are a person of clear record.   

10. As employment, you were a supervisor in a restaurant.  I have a letter written by your employer saying that you are a very good employee and you worked well.  I also have a letter from a registered social worker of the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs Association also speaking highly of your character.  In summary, both your employer and Miss Wong from the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs Association say you are a hard worker and work hard to support your family and are a caring person.  During your time of work, I am informed that your mother looked after your young baby whilst you are working. 

11. I am informed by Mr Tse that you are very remorseful for your misdeeds and you have learnt a bitter lesson.  The reason why you committed this offence was unfortunately because of your financial debts to credit cards and therefore you greedily agreed to lend your accounts to Mr Ko to assist in your financial constraints.   

12. Moving back to live with your parents, you were the sole breadwinner.  I am informed that you have a supportive family.  Your father and your elder brother are here in court and they have all urged upon me to pass as lenient a sentence upon you as possible.   

13. As your counsel rightly says, and to which I am sure that you know and have been advised, that money laundering is a very serious offence.  The penalty provided by statute is of 14 years’ imprisonment and the courts have recognised that deterrence is paramount for money laundering offences.  Stock J in the most recent case of HKSAR v Boma Amaso, CACC335/2010, at paragraph 36 said,

“It is to be remembered that ‘the criminality in laundering arises from the encouragement and nourishment it gives to crime in general. Without it many crimes would be rendered much less fruitful and perhaps more difficult to perpetrate.’”

14. What you are doing is helping criminals in their crime, and in your case, defendant, you knew and believed that what you were doing is helping Ah Ko in receiving criminal proceeds.  I accept however that you did not know at least part of it were proceeds from fraud on lotteries and investment schemes. 

15. Your role in this offence was to have Ah Ko use your bank accounts, assist Ah Ko in withdrawing moneys, giving the moneys to Ah Ko and then receiving a reward.  It was not a sophisticated money laundering scheme.  The period of time involved for the 1st charge was approximately one month and for the 2nd charge it was one transaction. 

16. As regard to the international dimension, these moneys did come from overseas and you did meet this Ah Ko in Shenzhen, but there is no actual evidence that you yourself knew there was any international dimension. 

17. The total amount of funds involved in both charges was about HK$1.76 million, and these are the factors to which I shall take into account when considering what sentence to impose upon you. 

18. There are no sentencing guidelines or tariffs, but I have taken guidance from the case of HKSAR v Hsu Yu Yi, CACC159/2009 and the earlier case I have mentioned of Boma Amaso.  I have taken into account the total sum involved, and in that case, defendant, I consider the totality of the sentence for both charges as a starting point.  

19. Had I convicted you after trial, I would have taken a starting point of 3 years’ imprisonment.  Giving you full credit for your plea of guilty and your remorse, I give you the one-third discount and reduce that term to 2 years’ imprisonment.  That will be the total sentence you serve, but I shall now give you the sentence imposed for each charge. 

20. On Charge 1, I take a starting point of 3 years’ imprisonment and reduce that to 2 years on your plea of guilty, and on Charge 2, I take a starting point of 1 year imprisonment and reduce that term to 8 months’ imprisonment, and those two sentences will run concurrent to each other, making a total term of 2 years’ imprisonment, to which you are so sentenced.