Ex-Chinese official’s son remanded in Hong Kong over HK$64m money laundering case

The son of a former mainland Chinese official has been remanded in custody in Hong Kong pending sentence for laundering more than HK$64 million, including a 4 million yuan bribe his father allegedly sought from a merchant a decade ago.

Xiao Rui, 37, will also be penalised for using bogus bank records to deceive the Immigration Department into granting him the right of abode in Hong Kong through a cash-for-residency scheme in 2013.

The District Court on Tuesday rejected Xiao’s assertion that he did not know the documents were false because the relevant immigration procedures were all handled by his mother.

The court also found the defendant had no reason to believe the money, which he channelled to the city through an underground bank over nine years, originated from lawful activity.

Xiao, who was found guilty of four counts of money laundering and one of using false instruments, is the son of Xiao Jun, a former anti-corruption chief at the People’s Procuratorate in Wuhan.

The elder Xiao was earlier suspended following a corruption investigation by mainland authorities.