Hong Kong’s graft-buster charges senior fire services officer with fraud for allegedly swindling bank, corporation out of HK$7.8 million

Hong Kong’s anti-graft agency has charged a senior fire services officer with two counts of fraud for allegedly swindling a bank and a government-owned corporation out of HK$7.8 million (US$993,603) by falsely claiming that he bought a flat for self-occupation.

Hui Chi-fung, a 38-year-old senior station officer at the Fire Services Department, was accused of defrauding the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) Asia and the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Insurance (HKMCI) by convincing them to offer him a loan and then leasing the property shortly after his application was approved.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) said in a statement on Monday that Hui bought the property in San Po Kong for HK$9.65 million in April 2020 and applied for the loan with a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of 80 per cent by indicating he would live in the flat.

The owners of self-used private residential properties valued between HK$6 million and HK$10 million are allowed to obtain a mortgage loan with an LTV ratio of up to 80 per cent from banks taking part in the government-owned corporation’s mortgage insurance programme, according to the agency. One of the participating banks is ICBC Asia.

“The charges allege that between April 16 and July 8, 2020, the defendant made false representations to ICBC Asia and the HKMCI that the above residential property would be occupied by himself after completion of the purchase,” the anti-corruption body said.

Hui, with an intent to defraud, then convinced the bank to offer him a loan of about HK$7.8 million and the corporation to approve his application for the mortgage’s insurance cover, according to the agency.

“An ICAC investigation revealed that the property was leased out shortly after the mortgage loan application was approved [by] ICBC Asia,” the agency said.