A 45-year-old registered electrician pleaded guilty at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts on September 24 to conspiracy to defraud involving false work-experience evidence submitted with an application for Hong Kong’s entry-level electrical-worker licence.
The prosecution alleged that, between October 2022 and January 2023, he submitted an unauthorised certificate bearing the name of the company where he was a registered electrician. The certificate stated that the 49-year-old applicant had more than four years of relevant employment under his supervision.
Applicants for the licence must have at least five years of relevant experience, including one year under a registered electrician, and provide employment records for assessment. The Electrical and Mechanical Services Department accepted the documents and issued the licence, but cancelled it after an investigation.
The electrician admitted helping to forge the documents and receiving HK$15,000. His lawyer said in mitigation that the offence took place during the pandemic, when the company’s business was weak, and that he regretted acting out of greed. He was remanded for sentencing on October 12. The applicant, who is also charged with conspiracy to defraud, was granted HK$10,000 bail and is due to return on November 19.