Hong Kong policewoman jailed for 21 months for money laundering and soliciting loans from members of the public
- Au Kar-man claims she committed crimes because of financial difficulties and her unhappy marriage
- Magistrate says officer knowingly broke the law and put herself in a precarious position
A Hong Kong policewoman has been jailed for 21 months for illegally soliciting loans worth HK$1.06 million (US$135,000) and laundering HK$530,000, crimes she said she committed because of financial difficulty and an unhappy marriage.
Constable Au Kar-man, 47, admitted handling HK$530,711.34 of illicit proceeds between October 2019 and February 2020 for a man she met on social media, after her husband started living with another woman and stopped supporting her and their two children.
The now-suspended officer also confessed, in a separate case, to seeking loans from a theft complainant and a suspect of a violent offence between January and May in 2020, to repay her younger sister’s debts and cover legal expenses in a battle with her own husband over their children’s guardianship.
Passing sentence at Eastern Court on Friday, Magistrate Lau Suk-han said Au’s financial burden and relationship problems were not excuses for “knowingly” breaking the law, adding her conduct had “brought disgrace on the police force”.
Au was first charged with two counts of money laundering in January last year before prosecutors laid a further three charges eight months later relating to soliciting and accepting an advantage.
She pleaded guilty to both money laundering charges, one of soliciting an advantage and another of accepting an advantage, after prosecutors agreed to drop a second solicitation charge.
Au joined the force in 1994 and was on the Eastern district’s investigation team when she opened a bank account and handled HK$156,565.60 from an American firm in November 2019 at the request of a self-proclaimed merchant, whom she only knew by his first name Mercel. The officer received a HK$11,000 payment from Mercel for her work.
In January 2020, Au processed HK$374,145.74 from a Peruvian company using a separate account.
She obtained HK$39,000 from the residual amounts in the two bank accounts.
Also in January 2020, Au attempted to secure a HK$1 million loan from a restaurant proprietress who previously filed a report concerning a theft case, but the latter refused after discussing the matter with her husband.
Four months later, the officer turned to a man who was once arrested for fighting in a public place but was never charged, successfully acquiring a HK$60,000 interest-free loan from him after she let him take a picture of her identity card. The officer had not repaid the money until after her prosecution.
Section 3 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance bars any permanent or temporary government worker from requesting or receiving an advantage without the chief executive’s consent.
Defence counsel said in mitigation Au had committed the money laundering offences for quick cash and as a means to maintain her relationship with Mercel.
The officer “foolishly” solicited loans from two civilians because of financial pressure, the counsel added.
In her judgment, Lau said Au’s laundering offence called for a stringent sentence as it had tarnished Hong Kong’s reputation as an international financial hub.
“This court does not believe an unhappy marriage as well as financial difficulty can be mitigating factors,” the magistrate said.
“Many offenders of money laundering offences used to have a clear criminal record. This defendant, being a criminal investigator, must have a certain level of understanding as to the inner workings of such crimes. I take the view that she has knowingly broken the law.”
By soliciting the two loans, the officer had also put herself in a precarious position which could potentially prejudice the integrity of her official capacity, Lau added.
The magistrate jailed Au for 12 months for money laundering and nine months for the bribery-related offences, before ordering the two terms to be served separately, for a total of 21 months.