ICAC charges former immigration officer for moonlighting as insurance agent

A former immigration officer has been charged by the Independent Commission Against Corruption for moonlighting as an insurance agent and conspiring with three ex-colleagues to defraud an insurance company of over HK$130,000 in commissions.

Yau Sing-ho, 29, an insurance agent-turned-immigration officer, allegedly used false documents to mislead the Immigration Department over his unauthorized outside work.

Yau and the three former colleagues aged 32 to 37 - Ricky Tang Tsz-lok, Uno Tang Sin-yiu and Leung Chi-kwong - were charged with two counts of conspiracy to defraud. Yau also faces another count of agents using documents with intent to deceive his principal - violating the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.

All four were released on ICAC bail and will appear at the Eastern Magistrates' Courts today for plea.

The ICAC said Yau was a senior relationship manager of MetLife and a licensed insurance agent before serving as an immigration officer between September 2018 and October 2020.

It added that Yau, Uno Tang and Leung were downline insurance agents of Ricky Tang, who was an associate division director.

The anti-corruption watchdog said the four conspired together and claimed Yau was one of the handling agents for a total of six insurance policy applications between August 2018 and March 2020, so that the company would pay commissions to him. "Yau received commission and allowances totaling over HK$110,000 from MetLife in relation to a number of insurance policies. Meanwhile, Ricky Tang, Uno Tang and Leung received a total of over HK$20,000 in commission in relation to six of the insurance policies," it said.

However, Yau never reported to the department that he was doing outside work as an insurance agent as the Civil Service Regulation required, and even allegedly misled the authorities using false documents including a memorandum and four letters in an internal investigation in September 2020.

"The relevant documents contained false statements claiming that Yau had sent in his resignation to MetLife in mid-September 2018, that he had not engaged in any outside work nor received any commission in the capacity of an insurance agent since joining the ImmD, and that he was not aware he was a licensed insurance agent before the ImmD internal investigation commenced," ICAC said.

The ICAC said all civil servants should uphold honesty and integrity, and should never participate in corrupt and illegal activities to obtain personal gain.

"Civil servants should also strictly adhere to the Civil Service Regulation on conduct and discipline, including the requirement of applying for permission before taking up any outwork work," it said.