Ex-DH gets 8 months' jail for money laundering

A former domestic helper was sentenced to eight months' imprisonment after she pleaded guilty to money laundering today at West Kowloon court.

Mildred Modesto, aged 40, was also sentenced to another two days after she pleaded guilty to staying beyond the two-week grace period given to her when her DH contract was terminated last Feb. 13.

Acting Principal Magistrate Cheng Lim-chi ordered the two sentences to be served at the same time, resulting in a total of eight months in jail.

PINDUTIN DITO

Modesto was convicted of dealing with proceeds of crime, a violation of the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance, as a result of $304,498 deposited and withdrawn from her Standard Chartered Bank account from the 23^rd to 26^th of January this year.

Her second charge, breach of condition of stay, arose after she remained in Hong Kong despite the Feb. 27, 2024 deadline for her departure.

Meanwhile, at Eastern Court, domestic helper Lynie Acosta, 39 years old, was told she will be taken to the District Court when her $8.83 million money laundering case resumes on Dec. 12, since the amount involved exceeds the limit for cases that a magistrate court can handle.

Basahin ang detalye!

Her lawyer had earlier urged Principal Magistrate Don So to free her on bail so she could continue taking care of her elderly and sick ward, but her employers failed to come up with the $100,000 cash bail which So increased from the earlier police bail of $5,000.

Acosta is charged with three counts of dealing with property known or believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offense, in violation of section 25(1) and 25(3) of the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance.

The police complaint alleged that Acosta’s Mox Bank account received the biggest chunk of the funds, amounting to $8,597,833.36, between March 25 and May 19, 2023. She was accused of dealing with the property with the help of two persons, one named Jane Corpuz and another unknown.

The same persons were also cited as helping Acosta in dealing with $192,940.08 in her account with the Standard Chartered Bank, and with $45,100.78 in her account with with the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, both on March 31, 2023.

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