Government facing HK$30m legal bill
Costs awarded to men cleared of blackmailing former chairman of listed company
The government is set to get a HK$30 million legal bill after a businessman and four other people cleared of blackmail were awarded costs.
Deputy High Court judge Madam Clare-Marie Beeson made the order yesterday despite an assertion by the prosecutor that Koon Wing-yee, 57, had brought suspicion on himself.
Koon and four others were cleared on Tuesday of blackmailing Hui Chi-ming, former chairman of Sino Union Petroleum and Chemical International (Sunpec), out of 100 million shares in the company.
They are expected to get more than HK$30 million in costs after a dramatic 32-day trial.
The other defendants were Wong Chin-yik, 61, Ng Chi-keung, 71, Chan Kwai-nam, 62, and Shum Man-keung, 59.
Opposing their costs applications yesterday, prosecutor Audrey Campbell-Moffat SC said there was reasonable suspicion that Koon was involved in money laundering when moving and disposing of Sunpec shares.
"The documents did not speak the truth," she said, referring to papers relied on by the defendants. The disposal of proceeds of the share sale suggested "something false and criminal".