No Politics Behind Bank Account Freezing: John Lee

The Secretary for Security, John Lee, says people should not be "fooled" into believing there are any political considerations behind moves to freeze the bank of accounts of crime suspects.

Lee made the comment in a statement published on the Security Bureau's website on Thursday, just days after former Democratic Party lawmaker Ted Hui said that HSBC bank accounts belonging to him and his family members were frozen in light of his announcement that he was going into exile.

A church later said its HSBC account and that of its pastor and his wife had also been frozen, with police subsequently announcing a fraud investigation linked to the church.

Both HSBC and the police have come in for criticism over the account freezing, but Lee defended the action.

"Recently, the savings of some suspects and related persons were frozen in relation to several money laundering cases. One of the important reasons for the mechanism of freezing assets is to protect victims' property, so that criminals cannot not do whatever they want," Lee said.

"Unfortunately, some people, for political reasons, smeared this mechanism and called it an abuse of power. I must solemnly correct such mistakes and misleading accusations," he wrote in the statement, which was only available in Chinese.

The secretary said it is necessary, right, law-abiding and responsible for banks to freeze the assets of suspected criminals in accordance with anti-money laundering laws, adding that people should recognise and support the banks' efforts.

The actions of the law enforcement agencies "have nothing to do with a suspect's political background," he added.

Other bank accounts believed to be related to crime will be targeted, even if they belong to a suspect's relatives, he said.

Lee also explained that effective action against money laundering will safeguard Hong Kong's status and reputation as a financial hub.