A judge yesterday warned two businessmen convicted of trying to launder money through Macau casinos that they were facing jail.
District Court Deputy Judge Tong Man found Cheung Kam-lun, 54, guilty of conspiring to deal with property known or believed to be the proceeds of an indictable offence. Hui Wei-chun, 39, pleaded guilty on November 4 to three similar charges.
Deputy Judge Tong found that the pair had agreed to help undercover officers launder several million US dollars, supposedly the profits of people smuggling.
However, the two men were only charged in relation to US$15,000 (HK$117,000).
The Independent Commission Against Corruption staged an undercover operation between January and May last year in which an ICAC informer introduced Hui to four other officers. The defendants agreed during several meetings to help launder millions.
They suggested setting up a company to transfer money out of Hong Kong, then gambling it in Macau casinos. On May 31 last year, Hui and Cheung accompanied the undercover officers to buy a cashier's order worth US$15,000 payable to Macau casino firm STDM at a Hang Seng Bank branch in Yau Ma Tei.