A man was sentenced to nine months' imprisonment today (February 9) at Eastern Magistrates' Courts following an earlier conviction for dealing with proceeds generated from an online sale of counterfeit goods, in contravention of "dealing with property known or believed to represent proceeds of indictable offence" (commonly known as money laundering) under the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance (OSCO).
Hong Kong Customs received information in September 2020 alleging that a man was suspected of using a personal account opened at a local bank to receive payments of about $670,000 in total from the online sale of counterfeit goods on behalf of another person. After deducting the remuneration, the man transferred the remaining money to a third-party account. After investigation, Customs officers arrested him in October of the same year.
Customs welcomes the sentence. The custodial sentence has imposed a considerable deterrent effect and reflects the seriousness of money laundering offences.
Under the OSCO, a person commits an offence if he or she deals with any property knowing or having reasonable grounds to believe that such property in whole or in part directly or indirectly represents any person's proceeds of an indictable offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and imprisonment for 14 years while the crime proceeds are also subject to confiscation.
Members of the public may report any suspected money laundering activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).