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Two Mainland illegal workers were jailed for 24 months by Sha Tin Magistrates' Court on December 17.
During an anti-illegal worker operation on August 18, Immigration investigators found two Mainlanders working at a construction site in Wan Chai.
Investigations revealed that the two Mainlanders entered Hong Kong using their Chinese Permits and were permitted to remain in Hong Kong as visitors prohibited from taking up employment. They were found to have used forged identity cards, false Construction Industry Safety Training Certificates and false Construction Workers Registration Cards to facilitate their job seeking in Hong Kong. They were each convicted after trial of one count of using a forged identity card, two counts of using a false instrument and one count of breach of condition of stay by taking up unapproved employment.
An Immigration spokesman warned that it was an offence in law to use or possess a forged identity card. Offenders are liable to prosecution and a maximum penalty of a $100,000 fine and imprisonment for 10 years. Anyone who uses a false instrument also commits an offence and is liable to imprisonment for 14 years.
The spokesman also warned, "Visitors are not allowed to take up employment in Hong Kong, whether paid or unpaid, without the permission of the Director of Immigration. Offenders are liable to prosecution and upon conviction to a maximum fine of $50,000 and to imprisonment for two years."
The spokesman appealed to employers not to employ illegal workers, warning that it was an offence to employ people who were not lawfully employable. The maximum penalty is a fine of $350,000 and imprisonment for three years. To deter unlawful employment, the High Court laid down a sentencing guideline in 2004 reaffirming that it was a serious offence to employ someone who was not legally employable, and the employer of an illegal worker should be given an immediate custodial sentence.
Ends/Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Issued at HKT 17:23
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