A Hong Kong businesswoman has admitted several charges of fraud using a fraudulent letter of credit (L/C).

Former deputy chairman of Yueshou Environmental Holdings, Kelly Cheng Kit-yin, admitted a total of 11 counts of conspiracy to defraud in Hong Kong's district court.

Charges

Cheng reportedly pleaded guilty so that charges would be dropped against her daughter, Carmen Cheng Wei-min, who also faced 11 charges.

Along with three other company directors, they were accused of using a false L/C to the value of $31 million Hong Kong dollars (HK$31 million - US$4 million) to borrow from four banks between 2001 and 2002.

Subsidiary liquidated

The loans were ostensibly for the Wing Fai Construction Company, an engineering and construction subsidiary of Yueshou Environmental Holdings.

But the proceeds of the loans were deposited in the defendants' bank accounts, while the Wing Fai subsidiary was liquidated in July 2002.

The case has been delayed for more than a year pending an application for dismissal and a judicial review over some missing documents.

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