Hong Kong businessman Jason Poon Chuk-hung, his wife and four others have been arrested on suspicion of defrauding an enterprise financing scheme out of HK$6 million (US$765,500) during the Covid-19 pandemic, the South China Morning Post has learned.
A source confirmed to the SCMP on Thursday that construction businessman Poon, 56, and his 54-year-old wife were among six people arrested the day before for conspiracy to defraud.
Police intelligence suggested a surgical mask manufacturer had allegedly defrauded HSBC out of HK$6 million via the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme, the insider said.
“We have come to know that Poon was a director of the company concerned,” the source said.
Poon, his wife and four employees have been accused of submitting fake sales records and “augmented” salary records between April and June 2021 to fulfil application requirements for the scheme.
The scheme was launched in 2011, but was extended to provide a special 100 per cent loan guarantee under the 2020-21 government budget to help ease businesses’ cash flow problems arising from wage and rental obligations during the pandemic.
The loans were fully guaranteed by the government at a concessionary, low-interest rate.
Poon rose to public prominence in 2019 for exposing the shoddy cover-up work at the Hung Hom MTR station, part of the Sha Tin-Central link project.
His whistle-blowing account prompted the government to establish an independent commission of inquiry to investigate the scandal.
The businessman later ran as an independent candidate in the 2021 Legislative Council election. He finished last among four candidates in the Hong Kong East constituency.
Frequently commenting on current affairs and exposing construction scandals since 2019, Poon has had multiple brushes with the law in recent years, ranging from defamation suits to a bankruptcy petition lodged against him last year. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
