ALLEGED conspirators in a $7 million mortgage scam went on trial yesterday without their accused kingpin after a court heard he had hanged himself.
The original gang of four forged signatures between January 1992 and March 1993 to get mortgages on three flats and then repeatedly remortgaged, the District Court was told.
But last September, Sunny Tang Wai-hung, 40, was found dead in his Lai Chi Kok reception centre cell - the conveyancing clerk had hanged himself, said Joseph Yau, prosecuting.
Yesterday, Ng Cheuk-man, 38, a former conveyancing clerk, pleaded not guilty to a joint charge with technician Chow Po-lam, 29, of obtaining a pecuniary advantage by deception.
Ng also denied two charges of using forged documents and another three deception charges. Chow pleaded not guilty to another deception count.
Lui Chung-yin, 42, an Urban Services Department workman, denied deception.
