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Hong Kong’s Court of Appeal has upheld a 56-month prison sentence for Ma Che-hou over a conspiracy that lured five Hongkongers into forced labor in Southeast Asia.
The court published its reasons on August 20 after dismissing Ma’s sentencing appeal on August 6. It found that the trafficking, confinement and forced-labor circumstances could properly increase the punishment for conspiracy to defraud.
8,127 USDT Was Traced to Ma-Linked Exchange Account
The underlying case included a cryptocurrency trail tied to one victim’s release from Myanmar’s KK Park.
According to the admitted case facts, the victim’s family transferred about 9,527 USDT as part of efforts to secure his release. Investigators traced 8,127 USDT into a cryptocurrency exchange account registered using Ma’s identity.
The funds were later converted into about HK$63,000 and transferred to Ma’s personal bank account.
The five victims had been recruited between 2021 and 2022 through supposed jobs, business opportunities and other offers. Some were taken to Myanmar or Cambodia, deprived of their travel documents and forced to participate in online scams. Contemporary court reporting said one victim was repeatedly assaulted and shocked with a stun gun after refusing to work.
Court Keeps Seven-Year Starting Point for Fraud Conspiracy
Ma argued that the District Court had imposed an excessive starting point by using its seven-year sentencing ceiling for the conspiracy charge.
The Court of Appeal rejected that argument. It held that human trafficking and forced labor could be treated as aggravating circumstances even though Hong Kong does not have a standalone trafficking offense covering the conduct in the case.
The judges pointed to the organized and cross-border nature of the scheme, victims’ confinement and abuse, and the financial gain involved.
The District Court reduced the seven-year starting point by one third for Ma’s guilty plea, producing the 56-month sentence.
Separate HK$6.98M Laundering Case Keeps Total Sentence at Seven Years
Ma was also convicted in a separate money-laundering case involving about HK$6.98 million in criminal proceeds. His combined prison term across the cases is seven years.
The appeal concerned the 56-month conspiracy sentence rather than that separate laundering punishment.
With the sentencing appeal dismissed, the 56-month term remains intact alongside Ma’s separate sentence, leaving his aggregate seven-year prison term unchanged.
