Pair acquitted in trial in wake of Hong Kong ‘gutter oil’ scandal
Company director and clerk were accused of falsifying documents that gave rise to 2014 controversy
An export company director and a clerk at the centre of the “gutter oil” scandal that rocked Hong Kong and Taiwan in 2014, were on Wednesday acquitted of falsifying documents.
Globalway Corporation director Kong Kwai-choi, 66, and Lai Yuk-kwan ,33, walked free after the District Court found insufficient evidence to prove they were behind a faxed instruction in 2001 that later drew Hong Kong into the scandal.
Judge Gary Lam Kar-yan, delivering his verdict, said he had suspicions that Kong, 65, would have known of the conspiracy given his director status. However, he added, the possibility was not absolute.
“With reluctance, I find [the two defendants] not guilty of [conspiracy to make false instruments],” he said.
With all three people who were originally charged now dealt with by the court, the acquittal marked – at least for now – the end of the scandal that centred on Kong’s Globalway and its partner company Eagle View. More than 1,000 tonnes of lard were exported to Taiwan unchecked as a result of the scandal.