Five men accused of bid-rigging at Hong Kong estate go on trial
Five men, including two former owners' corporation members, face corruption charges over alleged bid-rigging at a Hong Kong estate. The prosecution claims middlemen bribed the members to favour linked companies for a renovation contract.
Five men have gone on trial at Hong Kong's District Court over an alleged bid-rigging scheme linked to renovation works at Hin Tat Building in Kwun Tong. All defendants pleaded not guilty to two counts of conspiracy to give an advantage to an agent. The trial continues on 12 November.
According to the prosecution's opening statement, the first three defendants – Zhuang Congtu, Lam Sin-pin and To Hon-shing – acted as middlemen. The other two defendants, Cheung Kin-wah and Chin Ching-po, were respectively the former chairman and a member of the building's owners' corporation.
The prosecution alleges that the middlemen offered bribes to Cheung and Chin in exchange for using their positions to install a property management company linked to the first defendant, and to ensure that consultants and bidders connected to the alleged rigging group secured the renovation contract. The bribes allegedly included a payment to Chin equivalent to 10 per cent of the project value, and a proposal to refund Cheung's inflated maintenance fees.
The three middlemen are also accused of instructing Cheung and Chin to praise the bidding companies linked to the group during owners' corporation meetings, while disparaging other unrelated firms that had submitted lower bids. They allegedly told the two men to argue that contractor selection should consider background and experience, not just price, and provided interview tips and inside information to the favoured companies.
The prosecution said evidence includes secret surveillance recordings from a listening device installed in a restaurant, WhatsApp messages between the parties, and cautioned statements from the fourth and fifth defendants. Of ten meetings held by the five defendants, recordings from eight were presented in court.