Hong Kong singer Julian Cheung’s former manager guilty of fraud over endorsement contracts

Julian Cheung Chi-lam’s former manager was found guilty on Friday of cheating the Hong Kong actor and Canto-pop singer out of almost HK$1.5 million (US$192,200) four years ago.

Leung Nga-sze, 43, lied about the value of three advertising deals with international brands and falsified contracts so she could pocket the difference, the District Court heard.

District judge Timothy Casewell found Leung guilty after accepting the star’s evidence against his then manager, saying Cheung was “plainly and obviously a truthful witness” who had no motive to mislead the court.

Leung, who worked for management firm Markwin Investment, was convicted of three counts of fraud, an offence punishable by 14 years’ imprisonment.

Defence counsel Edwin Choy SC said his client’s decision to give the money back as soon as the crime was discovered was a powerful mitigating factor, coupled with her “original positive good character” that was shown in her charitable work, including a HK$200,000 donation to build a school in China in 2010.

Leung’s sentencing was scheduled for August 17, pending a social welfare assessment to see how Leung’s five-year-old daughter would adjust to being separated from her mother.

The offence came to light in 2014, when Cheung discovered that his HK$3.88 million contract with Ogawa, a Malaysian firm selling massage chairs, was actually worth HK$4.8 million.