Integrity Focus

A woman charged by the ICAC was today (September 20) sentenced to four weeks’ imprisonment at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts after admitting that she had offered a bribe of RMB 2,000 to a bank employee for assistance in reactivating her company’s bank account.

Li Rong, 38, director and shareholder of Zhong Sheng Technology (Hongkong) Co. Limited (Zhong Sheng Technology), today pleaded guilty to one count of offering an advantage to an agent, contrary to section 9(2)(a) of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.

In sentencing, Principal Magistrate Miss Ivy Chui Yee-mei remarked that bribery was a serious offence which warranted an immediate custodial sentence to serve as a deterrent and convey a proper message to the public. The principal magistrate took a starting point of six months’ imprisonment and reduced the jail term by one-third having considered the defendant’s guilty plea.

The court heard that in 2013, the defendant opened a Business Integrated Account for Zhong Sheng Technology which she owned at the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC). As there were no transactions in the account for over 10 consecutive months since 2015, the account was turned “dormant” in HSBC’s system.

In July 2019, the defendant, through phone enquiry, learnt that the bank account was in “dormant” status. She then visited HSBC’s Business Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui to reactivate the account. Since the defendant could not provide the required company documents, the procedures could not be completed on the same day. The defendant left the bank after exchanging contact information with the bank staff concerned, and later left Hong Kong.

The court heard that on August 5, 2019, the defendant, through a communication application, offered a bribe of RMB 2,000 to the aforesaid bank staff for assisting in the procedures to reactivate the account of Zhong Sheng Technology. The bank staff did not accept the offer and immediately reported the matter to her supervisor.

The defendant was arrested in August 2024 when she came to Hong Kong again, and was charged by the ICAC on September 2, 2024.

HSBC rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation into the case.

The prosecution was today represented by ICAC officer Benny Chang.

The ICAC reminds members of the public that bribery is a serious crime which they should avoid committing. The maximum penalty on conviction of the offence is a seven-year imprisonment and a fine of $500,000. Should anyone come across any suspicion of corruption, he or she should immediately report to the ICAC’s 24-hour Report Corruption Hotline 25 266 366. The ICAC collaborates closely with the banking industry and would take swift enforcement actions to uphold the public and stakeholders’ trust in Hong Kong’s banking system. The Community Relations Department has also produced a new educational video on bank account opening, which is being broadcast on different media platforms to remind members of the public not to breach the law.