A former air-conditioning service company engineer has been jailed five months for accepting illegal rebates for placing work orders with a contractor.

Chu Kam-hung, 41, formerly employed by Trane Service Hong Kong, was also ordered to pay a restitution of about $24,800 to his former employer.

Chu pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to accept advantages as an agent, and one of an agent using a document with intent to deceive his principal under the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.

North Kowloon Magistracy heard the defendant was responsible for selecting contractors and issuing work orders to them to conduct maintenance for Trane's clients.

In late 2000, the proprietor of Tin Long Engineering Company reached an agreement with the defendant that if Tin Long became an approved contractor of Trane, for every work order awarded the defendant would receive 10% of the contract sum as a reward.

99 work orders awarded

Tin Long became an approved contractor of Trane and between May 2001 and March last year Trane, through Chu, had awarded 99 work orders, totalling about $1.14 million to Tin Long.

Chu had, on a number of occasions, received cash payments totalling about $24,800 from the proprietor of Tin Long in relation to those work orders. The outstanding sum of about $89,200 had yet to be paid by the proprietor of Tin Long to him.

On May 23 last year, Chu was caught by Independent Commission Against Corruption officers after receiving $2,800 from the proprietor of Tin Long.

On December 14, 2002, Chu inflated the amount of a work order of Trane to Tin Long from $25,000 to $36,000, on the understanding the inflated amount of $11,000 would be paid to Chu.

After receiving the payment from Trane, the proprietor of Tin Long failed to pay Chu the said $11,000 due to a cash flow problem.

Magistrate Albert Wong said a deterrent sentence must be imposed on the defendant for the serious bribery offences committed.