6 months’ jail for PolyU applicant who shoved HK$50k bribe into lecturer’s pocket

2026-01-29 - 01:22

A 39-year-old businessman has been jailed for six months after offering a HK$50,000 bribe to a senior Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) lecturer. Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Photo: GovHK. Business Kang Jie pleaded guilty at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts to offering an advantage to an agent and was jailed on Thursday, according to a press release from the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). Jie had sought to secure admission to a top-up degree programme at the School of Professional Education and Executive Development (PolyU SPEED), but the lecturer rejected the bribe. The court heard that he had failed the compulstory English language interviews in late June and late October 2024. “During the period, he had sent numerous mobile phone messages to a senior lecturer who participated in hosting the two interviews and waited for the senior lecturer near the campus, requesting the senior lecturer to assist in his admission to the programme,” Thursday’s ICAC statement said. The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. The senior lecturer turned down Jie’s requests but – on November 4 last year – the businessman shoved HK$50,000 worth of banknotes into the pocket of the lecturer’s jacket after the academic left work, requesting he accept his application. “The senior lecturer rejected the offer, noting that bribery was illegal and reminded the defendant not to breach the law, after which the defendant ran away,” the ICAC added. The lecturer reported the matter to his supervisor, who contacted the ICAC. Magistrate Vivian Ho ruled that Kang had “undermined the rule of law, fairness and reputation of Hong Kong,” as she sentenced him and made a confiscation order against the bribe. Those found in violation of section 9 (2) (a) of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance face up to seven years behind bars and a HK$500,000 fine. PolyU rendered full assistance to the ICAC, the anti-corruption watchdog said.