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Three people were charged with contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (November 4). One woman was sentenced to one month's imprisonment, suspended for a year, while another woman and a man were fined $8,000 and $20,000 respectively.
The courts heard that in February and March this year, officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA) of the Home Affairs Department inspected three unlicensed guesthouses on Nathan Road and Kimberley Road in Tsim Sha Tsui and Tung Choi Street in Mong Kok. OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented rooms in these guesthouses on a daily basis.
According to the OLA's records, the guesthouses did not possess licences under the Ordinance on the days of inspection. The man and the women responsible for managing the premises 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 anyone with information about suspected unlicensed guesthouses to report it to the OLA through the hotline (Tel: 2881 7498), by email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk), by fax (2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the OLA website (www.hadla.gov.hk), or through the mobile application "Hong Kong Licensed Hotels and Guesthouses".
Ends/Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Issued at HKT 19:10
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