A man has been jailed two years and five months by the District Court for his involvement in manufacturing counterfeit credit cards, after voluntarily returning from Malaysia to face prosecution.

Andrew Lam, 50, unemployed, pleaded guilty to one count of possessing equipment for making false instruments. Another similar charge was left on the court file.

In April 1998, Cheung Chi-chuen, whilst residing in Canada, contacted Lam to purchase several hundred blank plastic cards to make counterfeit credit cards in Hong Kong. He asked Lam to arrange for the provision of materials and other equipment for making the cards. After arriving in Hong Kong, Cheung obtained the equipment from Lam.

On July 10, 1998, Independent Commission Against Corruption officers intercepted Cheung in a hotel after he collected a paper bag from Lam, and 286 blank plastic cards were found inside. The counterfeit credit cards could have caused a potential loss of $8.8 million to the banking industry, the court was told.

Lam was arrested in November 1998 and, under caution, admitted to his involvement. He absconded while on court bail and was arrested by Malaysian Police in Kuala Lumpur. He waived extradition proceedings and returned to Hong Kong last January.

Cheung was charged for his role in the case and jailed for four years and two months in September 1998.