Macau, China, 6 Feb -The government of Macau initiated legal proceedings with the High Court of Hong Kong to recoup around US$ 27.5 million in bribe money paid to Ao Man Long, the former secretary of Public Works, that was saved in bank accounts and safety deposit boxes in the neighbouring Special Administrative Region.
A statement released Thursday by the Commission Against Corruption of Macau (CCAC) said that the High Court of Hong Kong held the first hearing on the case, after two years of struggling to freeze the money that was held in bank accounts and in different currencies kept in a safety deposit box at several banks.
Ao Man Long was found guilty of charges including bribe taking and money laundering and was sentenced by the Court of Final Appeal to 27-year imprisonment in January, 2008. The former government official had, in Hong Kong alone, around HK$300 million (US$ 37.5 million) in several banks accounts in the name of companies and individuals (him and his family members, such as his father and sister-in-law) and HK$80 million (US$10 million) in safety deposit boxes.
In a petition presented to the High Court of Hong Kong, the CCAC aims to, at least for now, and “with the authorisation of the Government of Macau”, confiscate only part of the money that was discovered and return it to the society of Macau, as it was obtained in an illicit manner.
The Magistrate of the High Court of Hong Kong, which is handling the request by the Government of Macau, postponed its decision to 12 February, because of doubts whether it should make a decision on goods that are not in Hong Kong, as mentioned in the petition presented by Macau.
At stake are the money and goods that are in England and in Macau, and that is why the lawyer that represents the region was asked to clarify the request.
(MacauNews)
