Accounting clerk jailed six years over HK$10 million theft
On.cc · 3 SOURCES1 day ago5 MIN
Summary
A former accounting clerk at an information technology consultancy was sentenced at the High Court on October 13 after admitting a single theft charge involving about HK$10.03 million. The court heard that Lau Suk-wai (劉淑惠), 38, altered the amounts on 171 company cheques between August 21, 2019 and May 30, 2024, taking money from her employer over nearly five years. Deputy High Court Judge Choi Yat-ming said the offending was prolonged, planned and repeated, and involved a serious abuse of the employer's trust because the defendant alone had access to the accounting system and online banking. Besides imposing a six-year prison term, the judge also made a criminal bankruptcy order after the defendant said all the stolen money had been lost in gambling and she could not make compensation.
Key Points
- Lau Suk-wai, 38, pleaded guilty to one count of theft involving about HK$10.03 million from Win Domain Network Limited between 2019 and 2024.
- The prosecution case said she changed the amounts on 171 cheques after they had been signed by the female person in charge.
- The company was a small information technology consultancy with only five staff at the time of the offence period
- Lau had worked there since 2005 and was the only employee authorised to access both the accounting system and online bank account.
- The fraud surfaced on June 10, 2024, when the person in charge's husband tried to log into the account and found access unavailable.
Why It Matters
The case underlines how concentrated control over accounting and banking functions can leave even a small Hong Kong company exposed when internal checks are weak. It also shows that a guilty plea may not substantially reduce sentence where the court finds long-running, deliberate dishonesty and abuse of trust.