A 29-year-old Mainland woman who arranged for non-local pregnant women to give birth in Hong Kong has been jailed 10 months by Sha Tin Magistracy.

She admitted breaching her conditions of stay and making a false representation to an immigration officer.

She was stopped at Lok Ma Chau Control Point on January 15 and admitted she had been running a business to arrange for pregnant non-locals to enter Hong Kong to give birth.

Visitors are not allowed to work or establish or join in any business in Hong Kong without permission from the Director of Immigration.

Customs officers yesterday seized a cross-boundary lorry containing 92 boxes of illicit cigarettes worth about $2.8 million and arrested two men, aged 41 and 54, in Sheung Shui.

At about 1.30pm yesterday, officers spotted the lorry in a public car park at Fung Nam Road where they saw the two men off-loading wooden boxes onto a local rental lorry.  Customs officers then took action and found the 1.1 million cigarettes with a duty potential of $1.9 million.

The maximum penalty on conviction for dealing with, possessing, selling or buying illicit cigarettes is two years in jail and a $1 million fine.

Report any suspected illicit cigarette activities to the Customs' 24-hour hotline, 2545 6182.

A 42-year-old motorcyclist died in a Sau Mau Ping crash involving a taxi and another motorcycle this morning.

The accident occurred at about 10am while the victim was travelling along Clear Water Bay Road towards Kowloon.

Near 303 Clear Water Bay Road, the motorcyclist reportedly lost control and collided with a taxi travelling on the opposite carriageway. Another motorcycle travelling behind the taxi also rammed into it.

The driver of the motorcycle that triggered the crash was snt to United Christian Hospital where he died at 10:31am. The other motorcyclist was sent to the same hospital with injuries to his thighs.  

Witnesses should call Police at 2305 7500 or 2305 7570.

A 43-year-old Mainland woman has been jailed two months by Sha Tin Magistracy for working illegally in Hong Kong as a post-natal care worker.

She pleaded guilty to two counts of breaching her conditions of stay.

She was stopped at Shenzhen Bay Control Point on February 7, but failed to account for her business activities in Hong Kong. She admitted she was to take care of her Mainland employer’s wife, who had just given birth to twins.

An investigation found she was an odd-job assistant at her employer's company on the Mainland.

Police are seeking the stepfather of a 17-year-old woman who was attacked in Cheung Sha Wan.

The assault occurred in her Un Chau Street flat at about 3.15pm on February 7. She suffered wounds to her neck, hands and abdomen from a cutter and a fruit knife and was sent to Princess Margaret Hospital.

Investigators believe the 29-year-old man attempted to murder the woman.

Police today charged a 54-year-old man for the murder of a 68-year-old man in Tin Shui Wai.

He is believed to have assaulted the victim on a podium in Tin Yan Shopping Centre on February 6.

The victim later died in hospital.

The suspect will appear in Tuen Mun Magistracy tomorrow.

The Security Bureau has issued the amber outbound travel alert for the Maldives, due to the recent unrest in the country.

People planning to visit the Maldives, or already there, should monitor the situation, exercise caution and avoid travelling to places where protests and large gatherings are taking place, particularly the capital Male.

Updates will be issued through the media and the Outbound Travel Alert website.

Residents needing assistance outside Hong Kong can call the Immigration Department's 24-hour hotline, (852) 1868.

Police tonight reclassified a Tin Shui Wai wounding case as a murder after the 68-year-old victim died.

At about 7.46pm on February 6, Police were called regarding an assault on the victim by a 54-year-old man in the Tin Yan Shopping Centre. A 71-year-old man stepped in to stop the attack, and fought with the instigator.

The three men were sent to Tuen Mun Hospital where the 68-year-old died at 9.46pm today. The other two men were discharged.

The 54-year-old man was being held for wounding and fighting in a public place, while the 71-year-old man was released on bail.

The Office of the Licensing Authority is investigating two premises believed to have been used to offer short-term rental accommodation to pregnant Mainlanders wanting to give birth in Hong Kong.

Officers inspected 26 premises in Eastern, Yau Tsim Mong and Tsuen Wan Districts today, and found evidence two were offering accommodation to pregnant Mainlanders.

They also found a foreign domestic helper believed to be breaching her conditions of stay. Her case has been referred to Police.

The operation was a follow-up to last week's raids on premises suspected of being hostels for pregnant Mainlanders.

Police will strengthen liaison with government departments, the media and the community when political dignitaries visit.

Under Secretary for Security Lai Tung-kwok made the pledge to lawmakers today, in the Legislative Council, while discussing the review of policing arrangements following the visit of Vice Premier Li Keqiang last year. 

The review recommended Police have more liaison channels with other departments to improve co-ordinated strategies to manage future dignitary visits, be more proactive in community engagement, and formalise the roles, responsibilities and structure of Media Liaison Teams.

Other recommendations were to ensure smooth interaction between the Police Public Relations Branch and frontline units in the planning and execution of major operations, to review the current training provided to frontline officers in handling the media, and to work jointly with external stakeholders in executing security arrangements.

Mr Lai said Police will follow up on the review's recommendations.

He said Police have the responsibility to protect political dignitaries' personal safety, while safeguarding freedom of speech and the right of press coverage.

The Monetary Authority today issued an alert on a fraudulent website, www.bankcommhk.com, which looks similar to the official Bank of Communications' Hong Kong Branch website. 

The bank has clarified that it has no connection with the fraudulent website and has reported the case to the Police.

Anyone who has provided his or her personal information to the website or has conducted any financial transactions through it should contact Bank of Communications at 2269 9699, any local police station, or the Police Commercial Crime Bureau at 2860 5012.

An double-taxation avoidance agreement between Hong Kong and the Czech Republic is now in force, the Financial Services & the Treasury Bureau said today. 

The agreement will apply in Hong Kong for any year of income tax assessment beginning on or after April 1, 2013.

The pact was signed in June last year and came into force on January 24 this year after both sides completed ratification procedures.

Click here for details.

Police have charged a 37-year-old man with misleading police officers after he made a hoax report of a robbery in Happy Valley on February 2.

At about 4.10pm on February 2, Police received a report that a man was found injured on Tung Lo Wan Road. When Police officers found him, he claimed to have been attacked and robbed of $2,000 by two men with a knife on Tin Hau Temple Road. A fruit knife with bloodstains was found nearby.

It was later learned that he had made a false report, and he was arrested for misleading police officers. He will appear in Eastern Magistrates' Courts on February 6.

Police are investigating a traffic accident in Tseung Kwan O in which a 64-year-old man was struck by a car.

The accident occurred in the second lane of Wan Po Road near Chiu Shun Road at about 8pm yesterday.

The man was sent to Queen Elizabeth Hospital where he died at 10.35am today.

Witnesses should call Police on 2305 7500 or 2305 7582.

The Home Affairs Department has launched a citywide blitz against premises being illegally used as hostels for pregnant Mainland women.

Inspectors from the department’s Office of the Licensing Authority raided 43 premises in Eastern, Yau Tsim Mong, Sham Shui Po and Tsuen Wan Districts today.

Initial evidence showed three premises were offering short-term rental accommodation to pregnant Mainlanders. Investigations are ongoing.

Two people were found to be breaching their conditions of stay and have been handed to Police.

The authority has recruited staff with police-work experience to assist in the operation.

Operating an unlicensed guesthouse warrants two years in jail and a $200,000 fine.

Police have arrested a 31-year-old truck driver after his vehicle reportedly struck and killed a 72-year-old woman in Mong Kok this afternoon.

The accident occurred on Kok Cheung Street near Fuk Chak Street about 2.25pm.

The woman was sent to Kwong Wah Hospital where she died at 2.42pm.

Witnesses should call Police on 2773 5200 or 2773 5258.

Imagine being handed a fandangled instrument with a big airbag and pipes sticking out of it and being told you will learn to play it. Then you may understand how 18-year-old Tat, not his real name, felt when he was assigned to be a bagpiper and undergo marching band training while serving at Cape Collinson Correctional Institution.

“When I first saw the contraption, I felt it was very strange and complex,” Tat said. “When I tried to play, I couldn’t fill the bag with enough air, and my fingers were not flexible, so I was always off-key.”

The young man knew nothing about music and had never seen anyone play Scottish bagpipes before. But at the institution, inmates are told which skills they will learn.

The Cape Collinson Correctional Institution Marching Band was established in 1958. It currently has about 40 members - pipers, drummers and brass players. Vacancies arise as band members finish serving their prison term.

From Monday through Saturday, inmates have classes on academic subjects such as Chinese, English and mathematics for half the day. The focus shifts to practical learning in the other half. For band members, this is time for music lessons and foot drill training.

Correctional Services Department Assistant Officer Tse King-fai, the band’s conductor, said after six to seven months of training, band members are generally able to join outside performances, including the department’s passing-out parades, musical rallies, and other charity programmes. They participate in dozens of such events annually.

Scaling new heights

Most band members start with no background in music whatsoever. Besides acquiring instrument-specific training, they must also learn basic music theory to read simplified scores.

“The staff taught us ‘1’ is the note ‘doh’, on the musical scale, ‘2’ is ‘rei’, and so on. By singing ‘doh-rei-mi’, we learn a new song by reciting the melody,” said Tat.

Sometimes, band members can become quite focused on the task at hand, carrying their rote lessons outside the classroom.

“My cellmate once told me that I was singing the melodies while I was asleep,” Tat said.

His focus paid off: After a year of training, he can now play more than a hundred songs on the bagpipes.

Fellow band member, saxophonist Chun, a pseudonym, was amazed at his own achievement within eight months.

“Here I can concentrate on learning music, with no distractions. The staff teach us patiently, and encourage me to overcome difficulties.”

Shared experience

A band master with a degree in music is responsible for re-arranging the music scores and conducting the band. Four Assistant Officers who help lead the band, including conductor Tse King-fai and piper Cheung Kai-bong, have had no formal music training.

“I also started from zero. The difficulties the band members encounter were the difficulties I have overcome,” Mr Tse said. He learned to play from his predecessor, then passed the lessons on to his young charges.

“When I got started, I spent my spare time at home reciting the songs’ melodies over and over again.”

Mr Tse joined the CCCI in 2000, and helped manage the marching band. He later taught bagpipe-playing to Mr Cheung, who joined the band in 2003.

Valued apprenticeship

Mr Cheung said he did not know how to teach the band members at the beginning as he knew nothing about music and was responsible only for their discipline.

Then he learned how to play the bagpipes and studied the teaching method.

“By demonstrating the techniques to them, they will listen to you and treat you as a master,” he said.

Through this apprenticeship, Mr Cheung taught Tat not only musical techniques, but also how to rebuild his family relationships.

Mr Cheung learned Tat’s family seldom visited him, so he asked the young man to write letters to his family.

“He wrote a few letters, but didn’t receive any reply. I encouraged him to keep writing, until he did. After he sent more than 10 letters, his family finally came to visit him. And he discovered my advice was useful.”

Tat’s most impressive performance to date was a musical rally for the community at Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Wan Chai. More than 1,000 people attended, including his family members.

“They came to visit me after they saw me perform, and said it was wonderful. They were grateful that I had acquired useful skills here,” he said.

Uplifting lessons

Saxophonist Chun admitted he had never taken learning anything seriously, and his mother always worried about him. She was finally able to relax after watching him perform.

Over eight months of musical training, Chun lost his careless attitude and grasped the opportunity to develop a skill. Of the 80 songs he can play, his favourite is My Way. He hopes to continue saxophone lessons after his release from the institution.

During a recent training session, Mr Cheung played a bagpipe solo as an introduction to the popular inspirational song You Raise Me Up, with the chorus:

    You raise me up so I can stand on mountains;
    You raise me up to walk on stormy seas;
    I am strong when I am on your shoulders;
    You raise me up to more than I can be.

“I want to let them know I really support them, and I hope they get the meaning of the song’s lyrics,” he said.

“The happiest thing is guiding them to find direction in life and seeing them rebuild relationships with their families.”