Three Correctional Services officers have been charged with providing their own urine samples to assist convicts to pass tests to prove they were rehabilitated. The case opened in Eastern Magistrates' Court on Monday.

The three - 49-year-old Tang Kwai-man, 54-year-old Leung Siu-wing and 53-year-old Chan Chun-man - were accused of misconduct in public office.

Two of them pleaded guilty though disagreeing with some details of the case. On those grounds the court decided to proceed with a trial hearing of the case.

The three defendants had served at the Hei Ling Chau Addiction Treatment Centre. All three were accused of assisting 16 released inmates to elude drug tests during their one-year statutory supervision. All three officers were suspended after the offenses came to light.

Tang, who disagreed with the details of the case, argued that it was the unwritten rule in the Correctional Services Department that staff members replace discharged prisoners' urine samples with their own, in order to increase the appearance of successful rehabilitation.

Tang continued, that it was common practice for correctional officers to fill in false information about discharged inmates on their reports during the statutory supervision period. The objective was to help the former inmates find jobs after being released.

Tang said that the rehabilitation success rate provided by the department to the Legislative Council were all false figures.

Deputy Magistrate Allan Wyeth questioned whether Tang's behavior was an attempt to win promotion, since he had not been promoted for 22 years. Tang denied that and said that he had refused to be promoted.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption made the arrests in September 2009 after complaints were filed. It was believed that no bribery was involved.

Correctional officers are required to make monthly visits to discharged inmates and test their urine during the statutory supervision periods. The released prisoners face being sent back to the drug rehabilitation center if they breach conditions of supervision during the period.

The three defendants failed to make regular visits to the ex-prisoners' residence or workplace to monitor process of rehabilitation. In the meantime, the defendants allegedly submitted false information on supervision reports.

Tang and Leung are accused of "walking away" when the released prisoners submitted urine samples for tests, allowing the subject of the tests to replace the urine samples. Leung and Tang failed to mention in supervision reports that the released inmates admitted to have been using drugs during the supervision period.

The Correctional Services Department said it will not comment on the case since it has entered the judicial process.

The case will resume on Tuesday.

stushadow@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 08/21/2012 page1)