He Zhiping's wife is Hu Huizhong, a former Taiwanese star.(Oriental Daily)
Ho Chi-ping, the former head of Hong Kong's Home Affairs Bureau accused of bribing African officials in the United States, was found guilty of seven of the eight counts. The maximum sentence is 65 years in prison. The judge will sentence on March 14 next year.
Ho Chi-ping, the former director of Hong Kong's Home Affairs Bureau, was charged with bribing African officials and was found guilty of seven out of eight charges in the US federal court in New York, with a maximum penalty of 65 years in prison.After hearing the verdict, He Zhiping said in Cantonese: "It's expected, it's like this (I expected it, it's like this")."
He Zhiping insisted that the money provided was only a donation
According to court information, the eight charges are one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA, four counts of violations of the FCPA, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and two counts of money laundering.Only the case against the President of Chad was acquitted of money laundering.The judge will sentence on March 14 next year.
He Zhiping was arrested in New York in November last year. The authorities accused him of using the China Energy Foundation to contact politicians from many countries, packaging bribes as donations in exchange for commercial interests such as oil field exploitation rights, including bribing the President of Chad with US$2 million (S$2.74 million),and bribed Uganda's foreign minister with $500,000.
He Zhiping, who has been detained since his arrest, continued to wear a purple Chinese tunic suit when he appeared in court yesterday, looking nervous.Before returning to the cell after hearing the sentence, he responded to the Hong Kong reporters present and asked what he wanted to say to the Hong Kong people, and he only said thank you.
The lawyer representing him said that according to the procedure, it is not currently in the appeal stage, and he did not respond to other questions.Defense lawyers insisted in court that the money He Zhiping provided to African dignitaries was nothing more than a donation.
Members of the Civic Party: Hong Kong's reputation and trade status have been seriously affected
Pan-democrats are concerned that Ho Chi-ping was recruited by Hong Kong's first chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, to join his team; after Ho's arrest, Tung avoided talking about the incident in many public appearances.The interrogation of this case further revealed the relationship between Dong and He, including Lu Xiangan, who was regarded as Dong's retainer, and knew about He's bribery process.
Guo Rongkeng of the Civic Party believes that Ho Chi Ping's conviction has seriously affected Hong Kong's reputation and also hit Hong Kong's trade status, making the international community mistakenly believe that Hong Kong is Beijing's white glove.It may have a negative impact on the US Congress' review of Hong Kong as a separate customs territory.
Democratic Party Lam Cheuk-ting pointed out that the court revealed that part of the bribes were remitted to the United States through banks in Hong Kong, and part of the negotiation process also took place in Hong Kong.Therefore, there is reason to suspect that the relevant bribes may be transferred out through Hong Kong companies, and the ICAC has the responsibility to investigate whether someone abetted or assisted Ho Chi-ping in committing the crime.
Lin Zhuoting, who was the investigation director of the ICAC, said that he would write to the ICAC to request an investigation.He hopes that Hong Kong's law enforcement agencies will strengthen surveillance and intelligence collection to prevent Chinese-funded institutions, state-owned enterprises or powerful people from using Hong Kong as an international center for money laundering and bribery.
Hong Kong ICAC Commissioner Bai Yunliu set off for Malaysia yesterday to attend the meeting of the International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities.During the period, he will also meet with Tang Zhaoting, Director of the Singapore Corruption Investigation Bureau, to exchange the latest experience in anti-corruption.
According to the analysis of online media Hong Kong 01 by Justin Weddle, an American attorney who was a former federal prosecutor for the Southern District of New York and now specializes in litigation under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the He Zhiping case has already been stepped down.Hit multiple FCPA landmines and fell straight to the US French Open.
First of all, the China Energy Fund of which He Zhiping is the secretary-general is registered in Virginia, USA, and many meetings involving bribery discussions also took place in CEFC's New York office and the United Nations headquarters in New York.Wire transfer via New York bank account.
Wedel said that in the past, the U.S. government tended to prosecute companies more than individuals, because companies would be sentenced to sky-high fines, which would not only become a considerable source of income for the Department of Justice, but also share dividends with other countries that cooperated in the investigation.
Some analysts also pointed out that Ho Chi-ping, who served as a senior official of the Hong Kong government and a former member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in the Hong Kong area, and who has assisted Beijing in promoting the Belt and Road Initiative in recent years, has become one of the targets Washington chooses to attack Beijing under the Sino-US trade war.
Lawyers in Hong Kong pointed out that although Hong Kong and the United States had signed the Regulations on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons as early as April 1999, due to the political factors involved in this case, it is estimated that even if He Zhiping applied to serve his sentence in Hong Kong, the United States may not approve it.
