***********************************************
Three women were fined $3,000 each at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (December 4) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.
The courts heard that in May and June this year, officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), Home Affairs Department, posed as lodgers and successfully rented rooms in three guesthouses in Argyle Street and Shanghai Street in Mong Kok and Nathan Road in Yau Ma Tei on a daily basis.
According to the OLA's records, the guesthouses did not possess valid certificates of exemption or licences under the Ordinance on the days of inspection. The female managers of the three guesthouses were charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Ordinance.
A department spokesman stressed that operating or managing an unlicensed guesthouse is a criminal offence and will lead to a criminal record. Upon conviction, the offender is liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and two years' imprisonment.
He appealed to the public to report suspected illegal guesthouses to the OLA through the OLA hotline (2881 7498), by email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk) or by fax (fax number: 2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the website (www.hadla.gov.hk).
Ends/Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Issued at HKT 17:35
NNNN
