A Water Supplies officer and four licensed plumbers have been charged for alleged corruption over plumbing installation works at various locations.

Assistant Waterworks Inspector Chau Kam-yun, 49, and licensed plumbers Chan Kar-leung, 35, Shum Yung-kwai, 57, Lai Ngok-sang, 45, and Leung Wai-yiu, 66, will appear at Tsuen Wan Magistracy in three separate cases on Thursday to face 10 corruption charges.

In the first case, Chau faces five charges of a public servant accepting an advantage. Four of the charges allege Chau accepted advantages, including $9,000 in Hong Kong from three waterworks contractors as rewards for remaining favourably disposed towards the latter, who were involved in plumbing installation works at Fotan, Sheung Shui and Sha Tau Kok.

The remaining charge alleges Chau accepted $3,000 in Macau from a licensed plumber for installation works at a Tai Wai premises. The alleged offences occurred between June and September last year.

Further charges

Chan and Shum each face a count of offering an advantage to a public servant. Chan is alleged of offering $5,000 to Chau in July 2004 in connection with plumbing installation works at Fotan, while Shum is alleged of offering advantages, including $2,000 to Chau in relation to plumbing installation works at a premises at Sha Tau Kok in September.

In the second case, Lai faces two counts of offering $2,000 each to a Senior Waterworks Inspector and an Assistant Waterworks Inspector in June 2004, in relation to two plumbing installation works at Kwun Tong Road and Farm Road.

In the third case, Leung faces one count of offering advantages, including unspecified sums of money, to Assistant Waterworks Inspectors, Waterworks Inspectors and Senior Waterworks Inspectors between January and September 2004, in relation to plumbing installation works at two premises in Lai Chi Kok Road and Sheung Shui.

The defendants have been released on bail.