The Infernal Affairs of Hong Kong

Chapter 812 Under Trial (please subscribe for monthly ticket)

"Although the statement is a bit harsh, I admit that I have not done my best in the management of the company." Guo San apologized with embarrassment.

For him, the best rhythm is of course to follow the lawyer.

"Yes." Luo Liya nodded and smiled at him, turned around and picked up a document and looked at the judge: "Your Excellency, this is the academic information of the third defendant."

"The defendant's attorney claimed that the defendant was ignorant, but the defendant obviously graduated from Harvard University in the United States with a master's degree in business administration. Later, he also received a master's degree in law from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and an honorary doctorate degree from the Chinese University of Hong Kong."

Luo Liya smiled at Jiang Baiqi: "It turns out that this is the explanation for being ignorant and incompetent. It is really instructive."

After Luo Liya finished speaking, she straightened her body and said in a cold voice: "As the head of the financial department of the group, the third defendant should be responsible for every entry and exit of the financial department. This is his responsibility.

To say that he was ignorant of the tens of millions of bribes is an insult to the IQ of the jury!
If the MBA and LLM of Harvard and Cambridge can be called ignorant, then everyone here can only be called mentally handicapped, including me. "

"There is also the second defendant." Luo Liya turned his head without stopping, "Xindi is indeed a large group with strong hard power. Everyone knows this, but bribery has never been related to strength, but only to interests."

"I would like to remind the jury that Xindi Group, as one of the four major real estate developers, is indeed strong compared with others, but compared with the other three, it does not have a stable advantage, and even compared with Lijia, it is still at a disadvantage.

They want to step on the heads of the other three companies and make more achievements. This is the main reason for their bribery! "

Everyone in the jury nodded in approval and wrote down the record on paper.

Luo Liya smiled: "As for what your lawyer said, your elder brother is responsible, don't be ridiculous, no one in Xiangjiang knows that you and your brother are in the same group, and your brother is alone.

Even if the bribery was originally your elder brother's idea, but your younger brother was responsible for the transfer of money, and when the last few bribes were remitted, your elder brother had already been kicked out of the house by you.

Couldn't it be that your elder brother got addicted to being abused and remotely controlled the third defendant to send money to support your grades? "

The audience roared with laughter.

"quiet!"

Luo Liya's sneering eyes moved away from the face of the second child, and looked at the first defendant, the former Chief Secretary for Administration, Liu Yuanpei.

"Director Liu, I'm sorry, I'm the first defendant. To be honest, it's hard for me to believe that this is your real experience, but the expenses and income in this document clearly tell me that this is the truth."

Luo Liya held up a document with a deep tone: "As the former Chief Secretary for Administration, you can be said to have reached the peak of Hong Kong's power. During the financial crisis, you turned the tide and saved the Hong Kong stock market. Many people treat you Good reviews, including my survey, the public has a really good impression of you."

"But, is this really your expense? Is this really what the citizens think of you?"

Luo Liya shook the folder, looked at him in disbelief, then slammed the document on the chopping board, and shouted: "As the former Chief Secretary for Administration, you clearly know how many poor people there are in Xiangjiang, How many people are precarious, how many people can't even afford a decent meal, and you enjoy yourself to such a frenzied level, with 800 million red wine in your possession, how can you drink it!"

Liu Yuanpei in the cage was expressionless, with his head slightly lowered. These changes in time had already turned his hair all white, and his spirit was quite sluggish.

"Ahem, prosecution lawyer, please pay attention to your emotions." The judge kindly reminded.

"Sorry, Your Honor, I was shocked when I saw these figures."

Luo Liya sighed, handed the document to the clerk, and read it out of nowhere: "In my hand, only ICAC can verify the expenditure figures. From 05 to 06, the first defendant did not count the rent. The expenses were as high as 487 million. From 06 to 07, the salary of the first defendant dropped from more than 400 million to more than 100 million, but what is interesting is that his expenses increased to more than 1200 million."

"More than 1200 million!"

There was an uproar in the audience, and the shocked crowd looked at Liu Yuanpei in the cage, and wanted to ask, how did the money be spent?

"I think a lot of people are wondering, where did the money go?"

Luo Liya turned around and looked at the auditorium and sneered: "It's actually very simple. A meal starts at 27 yuan, and the highest recorded is 900 yuan. Even if it is calculated at the lowest level, it will cost about 176 million yuan this year. I checked last year's government The total expenditure on CSSA is 53 billion Hong Kong dollars, and the number of recipients is 9593, with an average of 32617 yuan per person.”

"More than 3 yuan, which is the minimum quota for our first defendant's food expenses in a day."

"The minimum quota." Luo Liya's tone was quite distressed.

"Our chief secretary, our Chief Secretary for Administration, is the chief secretary who seeks hope for the vast number of poor people. The money he spends on food in a day is the relief fund for those poor people for a year!"

"Who would believe it? What would those citizens who supported you think if they found out? The first defendant, you ate and drank in that position. Did you think about it when you saw the data of the poor and the per capita consumption?"

"Chilling!"

Luo Liya thumped the table lightly to express his anger, and then looked at the jury: "I want to remind the jury that the more than 1200 million yuan is only the data that the first defendant can accurately verify, and the first defendant's transparent income is absolutely unbearable. It can only come from accepting bribes."

The jury understood what he meant and took notes seriously.

"I object! I object to this false accusation made by the prosecution lawyer!"

Liu Yuanpei's lawyer stood up and said loudly: "Your Honor, the jury, I must reiterate that a person's standard of living has nothing to do with whether he accepts bribes! My client likes to enjoy life and is willing to spend money. This is his His way of life choice, his source of money also has formal channels, and several loan records can prove that the money he borrowed is completely enough to support his living expenses!"

"Then why does he pay it back? It's over 60." Luo Liya raised his eyebrows.

Liu Yuanpei's lawyer snorted coldly: "That's his business. Even if he doesn't come out, he can still apply for personal bankruptcy. This has nothing to do with this case!"

"Chi Chi Chi Chi, a Chief Secretary for Administration with a reputation all over the world, he didn't think about repaying the money from the beginning, and he went bankrupt when he couldn't repay it. What kind of character is this? Ma Dazhuang, what are you? Which lawyer? Why do I feel that you are helping me convince the jury?" Luo Liya laughed.

The audience roared with laughter, no matter how big it was, he was teased by him, Luo Liya was really playing a rogue, and he didn't care about his gentleness.

"You!" Liu Yuanpei's lawyer turned livid and turned abruptly: "Your Honor, this is a slander of my profession! This is a personal attack on me! I demand that the prosecution lawyer stop the slander and apologize in court!"

"I agree."

"Okay, I apologize." Luo Liya shook his clothes quite formally, bowed and nodded: "I'm so big, I'm sorry, I take back what I just said."

After finishing speaking, he covered his mouth and shook and laughed.

You can see that he is smiling, but you can't say that he must be smiling with this action, anyway, the audience laughs along with him.

Liu Yuanpei's lawyer gritted his teeth with hatred, vulgar!
"Ahem, attorney for the prosecution, are you feeling unwell?" The judge came out to control the court again.

"I had a convulsion just now, but I'm fine now." Luo Liya nodded respectfully.

The judge squinted at him and said seriously, "Defense attorney, do you have anything to add?"

"Yes." Liu Yuanpei's lawyer would of course add: "My lord, all the accusations made by the prosecutor's lawyer are all about the living expenses of the first defendant. I remind the jury again that this is a case of bribery! It is not a case of life. Spending case!

What the prosecution should submit is to accuse my client of accepting bribes during his tenure as Chief Secretary for Administration, instead of trying to tell the jury how much my client's consumption expenditure is!
The prosecution lawyer is consciously misleading the jury, and wants the jury to get a presumption of guilt from my client's excessive spending!
Let me give you a very common example. Today I asked Jiang Dazhuang next to me to borrow 1000 million. I ate and drank and spent him all. Even if I didn’t pay it back, it was still a matter of my character and had nothing to do with taking bribes! "

"That makes sense." There were whispers in the audience, and some members of the jury nodded their heads.

Xiangjiang is presumed innocent, and it is true that the accused lawyer brought him in just now.

The situation has been reversed a bit.

"Prosecution counsel, you can speak," said the judge.

Luo Liya nodded, smiled, stood up and asked unhurriedly: "I would like to ask the first defendant, how much money did you borrow in total? And when did you borrow it?"

"Recently, I borrowed two sums totaling 2100 million, and I borrowed another sum of 05 million in 400, and I can't remember any further." Liu Yuanpei said flatly.

"Is it because I can't remember clearly or because I'm afraid of remembering wrongly?"

"Can not remember."

Luo Liya sneered, "Just pretend that you can't remember clearly, and you can't remember clearly in the middle, so you always remember who you borrowed money from and how much you borrowed for the first time? You must remember the first time."

"I can't remember clearly." Liu Yuanpei said.

"I advise you to think clearly." Luo Liya pursed her lips and smiled: "Many people here have borrowed money, and they can't remember ten or eight yuan, which is normal.

But for a loan of more than 100 million, this is the first time to borrow 100 million. If you say you can’t remember clearly, I don’t think the members of the jury will believe you.

There is a simple reason. With the prudence of a Chief Secretary for Administration, do you have many options when you think about borrowing money?
It's nothing more than good friends around you. The first defendant, do you have a lot of rich friends? "

"I really can't remember." Liu Yuanpei bit to death.

Luo Liya sneered and shook his head, then turned around and said, "Your Honor, the jury, the defendant has been renting a mansion owned by the Guo Group since 00, Evidence 4-13, it is clearly written in the lease contract, the rent of more than 100 million, He couldn't afford it with his income at the time.

In 05, he became the chief secretary for administration. The rent he had to pay in the past five years was as high as 5 million Hong Kong dollars, which was not enough to invest all his income.

Rent alone is unsustainable, and we still need to live and maintain high-consumption food and drink. Where will the money come from?Who is willing to lend him this kind of money unconditionally?With such a friend, how could it be impossible to remember.

There is only one explanation, this mansion does not need money at all! "

"Please see pages 8-43 of the evidence. At that time, the MPFA lease expired, and the defendant, who was the director of the MPFA, voted for the Kwok Group and leased the property under the name of Kwok for 6 years at a price of 1 million. Three days before the vote, the defendant signed a rental contract for a luxury house with Guo."

"Isn't this a deal?"

"Is this not a bribe?"

"As long as the defendant can tell the source of the rent, the name of the agency, how he found the house, and who he connected with, I think he has something to argue with, but now, there are only sophistry."

"Your Honor, honorable jury, the law clearly stipulates that as a government employee, you need to declare your actual income and financial status to the government every year, but the defendant did not.

One time can be said to be forgotten, but why did not report for 7 years, I think the jury has its own correct answer in mind. "

The trial entered an adjournment time, and discussions inside and outside the court were very lively, but no one can be sure about the final result of the trial at this moment.

Although the prosecution explained Liu Yuanpei's inconsistency from many angles, there is always a lack of substantive evidence, which is to substantively prove that Liu Yuanpei did any illegal acts for Xindi Group after accepting the benefits.

All the procedures are formal, including the lease agreement of the MPFA in those years. The director also has one vote, and it is not dictatorial.

The outcome will only depend on the final verdict of the court.

After half an hour, everyone re-entered.

"Count—" the clerk shouted loudly, and everyone stood up.

The auditorium just looked at the judge, waiting for a final answer. Guilty or innocence didn't matter to them.

At the lawyer's seat, the clouds are calm and the wind is calm. At this point, for hundreds of days, they have worked hard, and the rest is out of their control.

Only a few people in the cage looked calm and stared at the judge nervously.

Judge: "Did the jury reach a decision?"

The jury: "Your Excellency, it has already been established. We ruled by a vote of 5 to 2 that Liu Yuanpei was established for violating the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance, misconduct by public officials was established, and conspiracy to provide benefits to public officials was established."

Sentenced to prison for 7 years and 6 months, and the remaining few have 5 to 7 years.

Liu Yuanpei's face was gray and defeated, and he appealed in court.

All the others appealed.

Seven days later, the appeals court convened.

In the appellate court, among the three justices, one stood up holding a paper.

".I have studied the 150-page judgment transcript in detail. Indeed, the prosecution failed to prove that Liu Yuanpei actually did anything inappropriate and contrary to his public duties for the interests of Xindi during his tenure as Chief Secretary for Administration.

However, I believe that the corruption of senior public officials like the Chief Secretary for Administration is undoubtedly very secretive. It is undoubtedly too naive for anyone to think that such officials will leave any clues. "

"Additionally, corrupt behavior can be as simple as a nod of agreement or a knowing glance, and in these cases it is nearly impossible to detect any specific wrongdoing."

"But that doesn't mean that a nod or a wink like this can't be proven without a charge of misconduct."

"As Chief Secretary for Administration, Liu Yuanpei has received a large amount of money for extravagant consumption, and has no repayment plan, and has no ability to repay the repayment at all. This is undoubtedly using public power to agree or tend to serve the interests of his benefactor."

"If a senior government official like Liu Yuanpei is exonerated just because he received money before or after he took office, it will be a miserable day for Xiangjiang, and it will also give other officials the wrong guidance that they can also operate like Liu Yuanpei. You can escape the punishment of the law."

"I now rule on the appeal of the five defendants."

"The appeal is dismissed and the original judgment is upheld."

"Retire!"

(End of this chapter)