Widow found guilty of cheating HK$590,000 in welfare money

A widow who once had more than HK$1.74 million in her bank accounts was yesterday found guilty of swindling almost HK$590,000 in public assistance money over six years.

To Ah Sin was convicted of one count of fraud after District Court Judge David Dufton rejected her explanation that she was keeping the money in her bank accounts for her mother.

"I do not find To's evidence credible," the judge said.

To, 58, earlier told the court she relocated to Hong Kong from the mainland in 1993. Her husband died in 1998, leaving her with two young children, aged three and six. She had received Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) since then.

To said her parents lived on the mainland, and as her mother did not have a Hong Kong identity card and could not open a bank account in the city, she gave To the money to invest with in Hong Kong.

The court heard that To failed to inform the Social Welfare Department that between 2004 and 2010, she had 11 bank accounts, two securities accounts and five insurance policies. She also did not inform the department that she held some part-time and temporary jobs during that time.