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Five inspectors from the Centre for Food Safety in Hong Kong have been charged for stealing food samples. The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) recently filed charges against the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) health inspectors. A spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) said the five employees had been suspended from duty.

They are accused of abusing their power by failing to dispose of unused food samples after testing properly. The officials, aged between 28 and 37, jointly face one count of conspiracy to steal. They were released on bail, pending their appearance in court to enter a plea.



Details of charge The charge alleges that between May 2022 and March 2023, the five defendants conspired to steal part of the food samples purchased on behalf of CFS for testing. Defendants are accused of using public funds to purchase food samples worth more than Hong Kong $88,000 (U.S.

$11,300) from five importers for conducting two tests on radiation levels. CFS is responsible for ensuring that the food sold in Hong Kong is safe and fit for consumption. At the time, the five defendants were on a team in the risk management division’s food import and export section.

The department’s roles include doing tests on radiation levels. Health inspectors must purchase randomly selected food samples fairly and reasonably priced. One kilogram of each sample is required to conduct the test.

CFS prohibits officers from deliberately ordering excessive food.

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