Hong Kong adds bribery charge against former CE

Donald Tsang

Hong Kong’s former top leader, Donald Tsang, has been hit with a new corruption charge over the refurbishment of an apartment by a businessman who had matters pending before city government.
The High Court approved prosecutors’ request yesterday to charge Tsang with accepting advantage from an agent in violation of the city’s Prevention of Bribery Ordinance, adding to the two charges already faced by the former chief executive. The case revolves around whether Tsang failed to disclose the apartment between 2010 and 2012, when he left office after seven years at the helm.
Tsang was scheduled to be arraigned on the new charge at a later date and didn’t immediately enter a plea. He had previously pleaded not guilty to two related charges.
The rental deal for the three-story apartment in the adjacent Chinese city of Shenzhen involved a major shareholder in Digital Broadcasting Corp., which was applying for a broadcast license at the time, according to prosecutors. Tsang was previously charged with misconduct in public office over allegations that he failed to disclose the relationship. He’s also accused of supporting the DBC shareholder for a top city honor.
The trial is scheduled to start Jan. 3. David Tweed, Bloomberg