Prosecution, defence agree in Moulin case
Prosecution and defence lawyers agree that dozens of import invoices which defunct eyewear firm Moulin Global Eyecare used to obtain HK$466 million in bank loans were based on non-existent imports, a prosecuting lawyer told the fraud trial jury yesterday.
Senior prosecuting lawyer Audrey Campbell-Moffat told the Court of First Instance that the prosecution and defence lawyers also agreed that most of the documents presented as evidence of money-laundering by Moulin did indicate financial transactions.
But the they disagreed on whether the transactions amounted to money-laundering by Moulin, the jury heard.
Five of the eight defendants on trial in the case - Former Moulin chairman Ma Bo-kee, his son and ex-Moulin CEO Cary Ma Lit-kin, former Moulin financial controller Tang Yiu-leung, Chan Po-ming and Lam Chun-wai - pleaded not guilty to one charge of conspiracy to defraud 18 banks, including HSBC and Standard Chartered. The five defendants are accused of falsifying invoices of imports from suppliers between March 2004 and May 2005 to obtain loans from these banks. The charge relates to a total of 92 import invoices used to obtain loans totalling HK$466 million from the 18 banks.
'The glaring dishonesty is none of the goods was imported. These purchases never took place, so these loans must be false,' Campbell-Moffat told the jury. 'There were a number of companies created for the purpose of raising false invoices to suggest Moulin purchased goods.'
She said Chan was asked to create false documents such as invoices and cargo receipts using a computer on Moulin's premises.
'She made an awful lot of documents out of her own mind. That requires a lot of creativity,' Campbell-Moffat said.
Out of the HK$466 million of bank loans, HK$46 million was laundered through a company called Kwok Nim, she said.
'This bogus company existed in terms of being registered, but it is non-existent in terms of trading. Why do you need an under-the-counter company if it isn't for under-the-counter transactions?' Campbell-Moffat said. Ma Bo-kee approached another defendant, Yu Kwok-leung, to set up Kwok Nim in 1999, Campbell-Moffat alleged. 'There's the big boss asking someone way down the chain to set up a company. Yu allowed himself to be used. In his being used, his signatures allowed money to be laundered.'
The trial continues today before Mr Justice Peter Line.
Paper trail
The number of import licences Moulin used to obtain HK$466 million in bank loans: 92
