At about 3:30 pm Friday, a car believed to be carrying Ho, left the highly guarded detention center at Dalang in Dongguan city as a wall of public security officers blocked reporters attempting to approach him.

After crossing the Hong Kong border, Ho's whereabouts were concealed by party members who said he needed time off for a rest and for a medical check.

Ho's release came weeks earlier than expected as his original sentence was for six months' ``custody and education.''

Although it has been more than five months since the scandal first rocked the party, Ho's release is expected to drive the democrats into crisis management high-gear again with the public hungering for Ho's account of what actually happened.

The 47-year-old Kwun Tong district councillor was running for a Legislative Council seat when he was arrested in a high-end hotel in Dongguan by police in August last year.

During what the mainland authorities described as a province-wide anti-vice campaign, Ho was found naked in a hotel in Humen town with a 25-year-old woman from Anhui.

Shocked by the arrest, which happened only one month before the September poll, democrats originally claimed Ho had confessed under duress.

They also said it was part of a pre-election smear campaign against the party.

In a rare move, Dongguan police held two press conferences in which they described Ho as ``a man with wicked habits,'' to justify the arrest with pictures of the half-naked Ho exhibited to the media.

Ho failed to gain a seat in the Legco in September but remains a district councillor.

Prior to his release, democrats said Friday morning they had learnt of his release Thursday from Ho's wife, Carol Ho, who accompanied him back to Hong Kong.

Senior party members said they had not decided whether Ho will face disciplinary action.

``Give us some time to take care of it,'' party chairman Lee Wing-tat said later.

``We know that as a political party we should give an account of what happened but we also have to respect Alex Ho and his wife.''

Fred Li, who ran for Legco last year with Ho, said he was glad about his colleague's early release.

``It is good news as we had hoped that Ho would be freed and allowed to return to Hong Kong to celebrate the Lunar New Year with his family,'' Li said.

``I will talk to him and discuss with him the way forward.''

Ho managed to retain his district council seat after a majority of council members ruled last Thursday that his absence was valid.

dennis.chong@globalchina.com

michael.ng@globalchina.com