Hong Kong Customs detects money laundering case involving about $1.6 billion
Hong Kong Customs mounted an operation codenamed "Spark II" yesterday and today (October 15 and 16). Five local men, aged between 34 and 71, were arrested for conspiracy or aiding to "deal with property known or reasonably believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offence" (commonly known as money laundering) under the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance (OSCO). They included a former compliance officer and a company secretary of a money changer, a bank staff member and former company directors. The total amount involved was about $1.6 billion.
In October last year, Customs mounted an operation codenamed "Spark" and cracked down on a money changer suspected of money laundering in which the compliance officer laundered about $600 million from unknown sources by setting up a shell company. After an in-depth follow-up investigation, it was further found that the compliance officer manipulated two other shell companies and opened a total of 23 accounts at a number of local banks to deal with over 4 000 suspicious transactions since 2020. Meanwhile, the investigation also found that a bank staff member was suspected of assisting the relevant arrested persons to evade the bank’s monitoring of customers’ transactions.
During the operation, a number of mobile phones were seized and the five persons who were suspected of assisting in dealing with the suspected crime proceeds in the accounts were arrested.
The investigation is ongoing. All arrested persons have been released on bail pending further investigation, and the likelihood of further arrests is not ruled out.
Customs reminds members of the public that they risk committing the crime of money laundering if they use bank accounts to assist in dealing with money from unknown sources, regardless of whether a monetary reward is involved.
Under the OSCO, a person commits an offence if he or she deals with any property knowing or having reasonable grounds to believe that such property, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly represents any person's proceeds of an indictable offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and imprisonment for 14 years while the crime proceeds are also subject to confiscation.
Members of the public may report any suspected money laundering activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002/).
CHP investigates cluster of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae carrier cases
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (July 21) investigating a cluster of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) carrier cases involving nine residents of a residential care home for the elderly (RCHE). The CHP reminded all RCHEs to implement measures for the prevention and control of infectious diseases in accordance with theGuidelines on Prevention of Communicable Diseasein RCHEs(the Guidelines).
The CHP received notifications from the Hospital Authority (HA) that nine residents (six males and three females, aged between 76 and 102) living on the same floor of an RCHE in Mong Kok District had been admitted to a public hospital for treatment due to their underlying illnesses in the past two months. Their admission screening samples tested positive for CPE upon laboratory testing. It cannot be ruled out that they were infected at the RCHE before their admission. All patients are carriers, with none of them having exhibited symptoms associated with CPE infection. They are in stable condition.
Following the HA's notifications, the CHP immediately conducted epidemiological investigations and inspected the RCHE concerned. The CHP found that carriers have been detected on the same floor of the RCHE since May this year. The RCHE management had not duly implemented the related infectious disease prevention and control measures, which led to transmission within the RCHE through the staff, contaminated environment or the sharing of items within the facility.
The CHP reminded the RCHE management to strictly adhere to the Guidelines, thoroughly clean and disinfect the environment, and ensure good hand hygiene among staff and residents. The CHP also recommended that the RCHE cohort the carriers in the same area and provide adequate hand-washing facilities.
The CHP will continue to investigate the cluster of cases and conduct screening at the RCHE concerned to determine whether there are any other CPE-carriers. The CHP will also continue to put the RCHE under medical surveillance.
Enterobacteriaceae (such as Escherichia coli andKlebsiella) are common pathogens that can cause infections in various parts of the body, including urinary tract infections, intra-abdominal infections or blood infection. CPE are enterobacteriaceae that produce carbapenemase, an enzyme that can deactivate carbapenems and other beta-lactam antibiotics such as penicillins. These bacteria are commonly resistant to multiple antibiotics, limiting therapeutic options, and may render severe clinical infections difficult to treat. The range of diseases associated with CPE varies from asymptomatic carriage to potentially life-threatening or fatal infections. The level of risk depends on which part of the body is affected by the infection and the patient's general health.
The proper use of antibiotics and maintaining good personal and environmental hygiene, especially hand hygiene, are important for preventing the emergence and cross-transmission of multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs), such as CPE. In addition, susceptible individuals such as the elderly, infants, young children, people with weakened immunity and pregnant women can reduce their risk of contracting MDROs by avoiding raw or undercooked foods.
Source: AI-found images
