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A woman was fined $3,000 at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (April 25) for managing an unlicensed guesthouse in Mong Kok.
The court heard that in October last year, officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), Home Affairs Department, inspected a suspected unlicensed guesthouse in Shantung Street, Mong Kok. During the investigation, OLA officers posed as lodgers and rented a room in the guesthouse on an hourly basis.
According to the OLA's records, the guesthouse did not possess a valid certificate of exemption or a licence under the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance on the day of inspection. The female manager of the guesthouse was charged with contravening section 5(1) of the ordinance.
A department spokesman stressed that it is a criminal offence to operate or manage an unlicensed guesthouse. Any person who is convicted for operating or managing an unlicensed guesthouse is liable to imprisonment. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a $200,000 fine and imprisonment for two years.
He appealed to the public to dial the OLA hotline (2881 7498), send an email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk) or download a report form from the website (www.hadla.gov.hk) to report suspected illegal guesthouses to the OLA via fax (fax number: 2504 5805).
Ends/Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Issued at HKT 17:30
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