Guangdong woman jailed for sham marriage to give birth in Hong Kong
Guangdong woman Zhang Qiulan, 39, yesterday became the first mainland mother jailed for giving birth in Hong Kong through a sham marriage after the "zero-birth quota" policy came into effect in January. The policy barred mainland women without Hong Kong husbands from giving birth in the city. The fake marriage with local Cheung Chun-hung, 36, was arranged by Zhang's former father-in-law Lam Yiu-chee, 71. Both Cheung and Lam were also each sentenced to one year in jail.
A mainland woman who entered into a marriage of convenience with a local man to give birth in the city has been jailed for a year.
The trio were convicted of conspiracy to defraud, conspiracy to obtain services by deception, and making a false statement in Sha Tin Court yesterday.
Assistant principal immigration officer Choi Yue-ning said officers were alerted after analysing intelligence and Zhang's hospital bookings.
"We are very concerned that non-local mothers are using illegal means to enter Hong Kong [to give birth]," he said.
It was understood that officers found the marriage suspicious because it happened only after Zhang got pregnant. Further, she got pregnant when she was on the mainland while Cheung was in Hong Kong.