Integrity Focus

A property agent, charged by the ICAC, was today (May 31) sentenced to 70 days’ imprisonment at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts for offering bribes totalling over $37,000 to his supervisor for naming him as a negotiator in two property transactions.

Lau Tsz-yeung, 31, former senior account manager of Centaline Property Agency Limited (Centaline Property), earlier pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to offer an advantage to an agent, contrary to section 9(2)(a) of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance and section 159A of the Crimes Ordinance.

In sentencing, Magistrate Mr Jeffrey Sze Cho-yiu remarked that the nature of the offences warranted an immediate custodial sentence. He took a starting point of four months’ imprisonment, and reduced the jail term of the defendant to 70 days having considered various mitigating factors.

The court heard that at the material time, the defendant was a senior account manager of Centaline Property posted to a branch in Tuen Mun. According to Centaline Property’s policy, the defendant and the manager of the branch would respectively receive a sales commission and an overriding commission for a property transaction procured by the defendant.

Centaline Property prohibited branch managers from soliciting or accepting any advantages from their subordinates for arranging them to handle or assist in handling property transactions procured by branch managers.

In January and May 2018, two clients of Centaline Property purchased two private residential properties in Tuen Mun. Although the above branch manager procured the two property transactions, he proposed to name the defendant as the negotiator in those transactions.

Afterwards Centaline Property paid sales commissions totalling over $91,000 to the defendant for the two property transactions. Upon the request of the branch manager, the defendant paid two bribes totalling over $37,000 to the branch manager for naming him as the negotiator in the two property transactions.

The case arose from a corruption complaint. Centaline Property had rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation into the case.

The prosecution was today represented by Senior Public Prosecutor Steven Liu, assisted by ICAC officer Simon Ip.