Seven people and two firms oversaw the renovation work at Wang Fuk Court, the site of The city’s deadliest fire in decadeshave been charged with premeditated murder and a number of other crimes.
Three directors and employees at the two companies were among those formally charged by police and the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) at the West Kowloon Law Courts building on Wednesday.
The defendants face a total of 25 charges, including manslaughter, conspiracy to defraud, money laundering, attempting to pervert the course of public justice and tax evasion.
The fire at Wang Fuk Court, a government-subsidized housing estate in Tai Po, in November killed 168 people and displaced thousands of residents.
‘Gross negligence’
According to the fee sheets, the two firms are Prestige Construction & Engineering, the main contractor for the HK$330 million renovation project at Wang Fuk Court, and Will Power Architects, the consulting firm overseeing the government-mandated work.
Among the seven people charged are Will Power director Wong Hap-yin, its registered inspector Wilson Ng and Prestige Construction director Ho Kin-yip.
Wong, Ng and Ho, along with their two companies, were charged with five counts of murder.
The other four defendants are: Hau Wa-kin, another director at Prestige; Chung So-fan, Wong’s wife; Hung Kwok-wai, Wong’s friend; and Lin Min, assistant manager at Will Power.
The charge sheets also included the names of 168 people killed in the fire.
Senior Superintendent Basil Tang of the Northern New Territories Regional Crime Unit told a press conference on Wednesday: “The firms and individuals responsible for the Wang Fuk Court renovation project failed in their duty of care and displayed gross negligence in supervising construction materials and engineering protocols.”
The police investigation found key safety violations, including the use of non-flame-retardant scaffold netting and flammable foam boards, and the removal of windows along the emergency escape stairs, Tang also said.
Tang told reporters that the three men accused of manslaughter had been denied bail and the case had been adjourned to September 2 for the next mention in court.
supply manipulation
At the same press conference, ICAC lead investigator Hazel Law said Wong, Ho and Hau conspired to rig the tender process and favor Prestige by removing the contractor’s conviction records from the tender documents.
From, who was with duty with oversight of the inspection and supervision of the repair work, “completely failed to carry out the inspections and responsibilities required by his professional role,” Law said.
“We suspect that this tragedy was driven entirely by individual greed,” she said. The defendants “not only failed to fulfill their professional responsibilities, but resorted to deep corruption and fraud to achieve their objectives, showing a disregard for the lives and properties of residents.”
According to a police statement on Wednesday, the force and ICAC brought the charges following investigations and after seeking legal advice from the Department of Justice.
