Brothers in HK say not guilty of corruption
Source: Agencies |
April 4, 2012, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
TWO billionaire brothers who run Hong Kong's top property-development firm said yesterday they're innocent of corruption after they were arrested last week in the city's biggest graft probe in decades.
Raymond and Thomas Kwok, chairmen and managing directors of Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd, were arrested last Thursday by an anti-corruption agency.
"I want to confirm to everyone that I myself haven't done anything wrong and I believe Thomas Kwok hasn't done anything wrong either," said Raymond Kwok. "I expect the investigation will prove we're innocent."
The pair are suspected of bribery, along with an ex-government official whom local news reports have identified as a former chief secretary - the No. 2 job in the government.
They have not yet been formally charged.
The Kwok family is one of Asia's richest, with a net worth of US$18.3 billion, according to Forbes.
Sun Hung Kai, Hong Kong's biggest developer by market value, has built some of Hong Kong's most recognizable buildings, including the 118-story International Commerce Center in Kowloon, the city's tallest.
Thomas Kwok told reporters that it would be "business as usual" at Sun Hung Kai, which said last week that the two would continue in their roles.
The arrests shocked Hong Kong and are likely to add to growing public mistrust of the city's tycoons. Fed up with a growing rich-poor gap driven by soaring property prices, residents worry that the city's billionaires, many of whom have made their fortunes from real estate, have too much influence on the government.
Raymond and Thomas Kwok, chairmen and managing directors of Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd, were arrested last Thursday by an anti-corruption agency.
"I want to confirm to everyone that I myself haven't done anything wrong and I believe Thomas Kwok hasn't done anything wrong either," said Raymond Kwok. "I expect the investigation will prove we're innocent."
The pair are suspected of bribery, along with an ex-government official whom local news reports have identified as a former chief secretary - the No. 2 job in the government.
They have not yet been formally charged.
The Kwok family is one of Asia's richest, with a net worth of US$18.3 billion, according to Forbes.
Sun Hung Kai, Hong Kong's biggest developer by market value, has built some of Hong Kong's most recognizable buildings, including the 118-story International Commerce Center in Kowloon, the city's tallest.
Thomas Kwok told reporters that it would be "business as usual" at Sun Hung Kai, which said last week that the two would continue in their roles.
The arrests shocked Hong Kong and are likely to add to growing public mistrust of the city's tycoons. Fed up with a growing rich-poor gap driven by soaring property prices, residents worry that the city's billionaires, many of whom have made their fortunes from real estate, have too much influence on the government.
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