Five Hong Kong government health inspectors have been charged with theft, after they allegedly conspired to steal canned abalone, crab bisque and other imported food samples purchased for radiation tests by the food safety authority.
The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) charged the officials from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) on Tuesday, after they were accused of stealing unused food samples procured for testing.
An ICAC statement on Wednesday named the five, aged between 28 and 37, as Chan Ying-shan, Lam Hiu-kwan, Yu Fung-chun, Lau Shing-hin and Lee Chun-hei. They were said to have conspired between May 2022 and March 2023 to steal some of the food samples purchased on behalf of the Centre for Food Safety’s Risk Management Division.
Their duties as division members included checking the radiation level of food items to ensure they were safe for consumption. Radiation testing of imported Japanese food became part of routine food surveillance in January 2021.
The anti-graft watchdog said the accused spent more than HK$88,000 in taxpayer’s money to buy food samples from five food importers in mid-2022 and early 2023 for two radiation tests.
Upon receiving a corruption complaint, the ICAC launched an investigation and found that Chan, Lam, Yu, Lau and Lee had planned to misappropriate the leftover samples after the tests. This was in violation of internal guidelines requiring officers to properly dispose of the residual samples and keep a record.
ICAC officers later uncovered more than 80 unused food samples at the home of the five, including canned abalone, white truffle sauce, crab bisque, Japanese rice and pasta.
The anti-corruption watchdog said it would provide recommendations to help the FEHD stamp out malpractices.
“[T]he ICAC has provided integrity refresher training to all FEHD staff responsible for food testing, reminding them to maintain a high standard of integrity when discharging their duties, and not to use their official position for personal gain,” an English statement read.
The ICAC granted bail to the five health inspectors and they were due to appear at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts on Thursday.
Help safeguard press freedom & keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team
