Five men accused of being part of a syndicate that ran an underground bank in two mainland cities and laundered money through Hong Kong have gone on trial in Jiangmen.
They are accused of illegally buying offshore foreign currency totalling HK$537 million for 15 customers between March and August last year, the Southern Metropolis News said yesterday, adding the syndicate also laundered the renminbi earnings of its Shantou-based members.
Three of the men - Lian Yuqi, Chen Dekun and Xu Liexiong - are accused of working for an underground bank in Shantou run by Xu Pengzhan, who is being tried separately. Xu Pengzhan allegedly managed the bank for his elder brother, Xu Pengyan.
The report said every morning Xu Pengzhan would confirm the currency conversion rates with Yan Xilong and Yan Xiaowu, who operated another underground bank in Shenzhen.
Xu Pengzhan reportedly used at least one Hong Kong company - Hong Kong Zhongsheng Auto (Holding) Ltd - to pay foreign currency into the Hong Kong bank accounts designated by his customers.
Lian, Chen and Xu Liexiong, acting as carriers for Xu Pengzhan, then allegedly collected the equivalent amounts in renminbi from the foreign currency accounts and later transferred it to Yan Xilong and Yan Xiaowu's underground bank in Shenzhen.
