Hong Kong’s antitrust watchdog reveals first criminal case related to failure to comply with investigatory powers
Suspect tried to delete computer documents during inquiry into suspected price-fixing among cleaning companies, Competition Commission says
Hong Kong’s antitrust watchdog announced its first criminal case related to a failure to comply with its investigatory powers on Thursday, with a female employee of a cleaning company charged with destroying evidence.
The Competition Commission reported the case to police after finding evidence that Jessica Lui Miu-ching, 53, had attempted to delete five documents from computers during an investigation into suspected price-fixing among cleaning service companies on September 23, 2019.
Lui, who claimed to be an office worker with Hong Kong Commercial Cleaning Services Limited (HKC), faces one count of disposal and concealment of documents.
Her case was mentioned at West Kowloon Court on Thursday. Magistrate Tsang Hing-tung postponed the case to October 10 and set her bail at HK$5,000 (US$641).
“This marks the first case in which a person is subject to criminal prosecution for non-compliance with the commission’s investigation powers,” the commission said.
The agency stressed that no one should obstruct it from exercising its investigatory powers, saying: “The commission will remain steadfast in its commitment to performing its functions, investigate possible contraventions of the ordinance and adopt appropriate follow-up actions where contraventions have been identified.”
Under the Competition Ordinance, obstructing a search by the commission, including by destroying, falsifying or concealing documents relevant to an investigation, is a criminal offence and carries a maximum penalty of two years in jail and a HK$1 million fine.