Twenty-three foreign domestic helpers involved in the case had been earlier convicted of making false representation to an immigration officer, and were sentenced to up to eight-month imprisonment.

The Immigration Department has processed several foreign domestic helper visa applications through the same employment agent since April 2018. The department detected several suspicious employers' residential and financial proofs and triggered the investigation of the employment agent after in-depth and thorough comparisons.

Officers found that the numbers on the bills submitted to the department were that same, as well as bank statements that had the same amount of saving. After inquiring relevant organizations, officers revealed that all the documents submitted were forged.

Officers then mount operations and arrested the employment agent and 23 foreigners who had applied for foreign domestic helpers visas using false contracts in July 2018. They also seized two computers and four mobile phones during the operation. Respective false employers' proofs were discovered after conducting forensic examinations as well.

The agent charged around HK$20,000 to HK$40,000 each time to handle false domestic helper employment contracts, involving around HK$900,000 in total. After successful applications for the visas, the agent will then arrange them to get jobs like waitresses in restaurants or clerks in the office.

As for the “employers” involved in the case, they all said they didn't hire any foreign domestic helper and didn't know their personal information was stolen and used by others.

An investigation of the other suspects is continuing, the department said, adding that more arrests may be made in the future.

"Anyone who commits the offense of conspiracy to defraud is liable to prosecution and, upon conviction, the maximum penalty is imprisonment for 14 years,” a spokesperson for the department reminded the public.