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| File photo |
A Filipina whose bank account was one of 13 through which a crime syndicate channeled money it raised from a romance scam, was sentenced today at the Eastern Court to 16 months’ imprisonment for money laundering.
Jennifer Kiaki, 32 years old and holder of a recognizance
form to serve as her identification document as an asylum seeker, pleaded guilty to dealing with HK$944,080.50
through her account with Hang Seng Bank Limited between May 20, 2020 and May 13
the next year.
Her crime was dealing
with property known or believed to represent proceeds of indictable offence, contrary
to sections 25(1) and 25(3) of the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance.
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Principal Magistrate David Cheung noted that the operation
of the bank account lasted for a year, during which it received deposits from
the victims of the love scam.
Magistrate Cheung acknowledged that Kiaki had no knowledge
of the scam but he was convinced, based on reasonable inference, that she was
involved in the money laundering.
She even participated in withdrawing some of the money from
her account, he added.
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In his plea for a lenient sentence, Kiaki’s lawyer suggested
a starting point of 12 months’ jail, based on a previous case, but Magistrate Cheung
cited another case that suggested a starting point of 24 months.
He arrived at the final sentence by deducting the one-third discount, or eight months, she was entitled to for her guilty plea.
