Former Hong Kong home secretary turned ‘civil diplomat’ Patrick Ho tapped UN connections to broker deals
Well connected to Beijing, the 68-year-old self-styled broker of Sino-US ties has been arrested in New York on graft charges
But Ho got a warning: he should skip the capital and, instead, take a flight to Ethiopia where he would then fly straight to Déby’s presidential village “in the middle of the desert”.
This, Ho was told, could “avoid [Chad’s capital N’Djamena] altogether to safeguard the confidentiality of our meeting”.
How the greater bay areas of China and the US can pave the way for trade cooperation
A few weeks after that email, a two-hour meeting took place between Ho and Déby, according to a 54-page account of allegations against Ho issued by the US Department of Justice.
In the meeting, Déby made a promise to an unnamed energy firm represented by Ho over the right to a certain oilfield, the justice department said.
In exchange, the department added, Ho allegedly caused the company to pledge a US$2 million (HK$15.6 million) bribe to the president.