Hong Kong court tells former ESF worker accused of taking bribes for kindergarten placements to surrender travel documents
- Fatima Rumjahn, 52, stands accused of taking more than HK$840,000 in bribes from 14 parents to secure placements
- 10 parents have been charged, from eight families in total, while all 11 defendants were released on bail
A former kindergarten administrator under Hong Kong’s biggest international school group has been asked to stay in the city and surrender all travel documents to a court as part of her bail conditions in a case where she stands accused of taking more than HK$840,000 (US$107,024) in bribes from 14 parents to help secure placements.
Former English Schools Foundation (ESF) employee Fatima Rumjahn, 52, did not have to enter a plea when she first appeared before Sha Tin Court on Friday, as prosecutors applied to move the case to the District Court for trial.
Also standing in the dock were 10 of the 14 parents. Among the two men and eight women were a tutorial teacher, a merchant, two company managers and four housewives.
Acting principal magistrate David Cheung Chi-wai released all 11 defendants on bail at HK$30,000 to HK$40,000.
He ordered them to remain in Hong Kong, hand over all travel documents, report any change of addresses to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and stay away from all 27 prosecution witnesses.
He also granted the defence’s application for a gag order banning the publication of information that might reveal the identities of the 13 children involved in the case, except for the name of the school and the defendants.
The 11 will return to the same court on August 5.
Rumjahn allegedly received bribes ranging from HK$20,000 to HK$100,000 for each placement when she handled K1 admission applications to Wu Kai Sha International Kindergarten in three school years between 2019-20 and 2021-22.
The ICAC slapped a total of 14 charges in the case, 13 of which target Rumjahn. The charges are eight counts of conspiracy for an agent to accept an advantage, four of an agent accepting an advantage and one of an agent soliciting an advantage between September 2018 and August 2021.
The 10 parents charged, from eight families in total, are aged between 34 and 44.
Among them are two couples: housewife Marissa Choy Wai-yin and her partner, project manager Lee Chun-long; and manager Cora Lam Man-hei and her husband, merchant Cheung Ka-ming.
The others are six mothers: tutor Tsui Wai-him; frozen meat shop manager Julia Wong Wing-man; product specialist Ma Yin-man; and housewives Kong Ching-men, Vida Lau Ying-kwan and Li Jiebing.
Eight charges allege Rumjahn separately conspired with the 10 parents to accept eight bribes amounting to more than HK$650,000 in exchange for making the school offer eight K1 placements in the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years.
Another charge alleges that Kong incited Rumjahn to solicit a bribe from Choy to offer a place in the 2021-22 school year to her child.
Four other charges allege Rumjahn accepted four bribes totalling HK$190,000 from four other mothers for the same purpose in the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years.
Prosecutors did not explain in Friday’s sitting why the four mothers were off the hook at this stage.
Ex-ESF worker, parents charged in Hong Kong kindergarten bribery case
The remaining charge alleges Rumjahn solicited a bribe of HK$50,000 from another woman to offer the same help for the 2019-20 school year to her child but the mother rejected the offer on the spot.
Lau jointly faces two conspiracy charges with Rumjahn, while the two couples and the remaining five mothers each jointly face the same charge as the ex-administrator. Kong also faces a count of inciting an agent to solicit an advantage.
All the offences are punishable by up to seven years in jail and a HK$500,000 fine under the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.
