HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong authorities on Wednesday charged seven individuals and two building companies with offenses including manslaughter and conspiracy to defraud in connection with the city's deadliest fire in decades. The massive blaze engulfed seven apartment buildings and killed 168 people on November 26, 2025, shattering the close-knit community of Wang Fuk Court in the suburban district of Tai Po.
Former residents and relatives of the deceased have been waiting for answers for months. In a statement on Wednesday, authorities said police and the Independent Commission Against Corruption charged the suspects with 25 counts, including money laundering, attempting to pervert the course of public justice, and tax evasion.
The two companies charged are consultancy firm Will Power Architects Company and Prestige Construction & Engineering Co., the main contractor involved in a major renovation project at Wang Fuk Court that was underway when the blaze occurred. The seven defendants played different roles in the renovation works, authorities said.
They included the directors of the two companies and a registered inspector of Will Power. The defendants told the court they understood the charges, and most appeared calm.
Lists of victims' names were read out from the charge sheets in court — the first such disclosure to the public. The hearing will resume in September.
Senior police superintendent Basil Tang told reporters that those in charge of the renovation project and the relevant companies were seriously negligent in monitoring the materials used and the procedures involved. Tang pointed to issues such as the use of non-fire-retardant scaffolding netting and foam boards.
“The above work arrangements are suspected of seriously affecting the building’s fire safety, causing the fire to spread rapidly, and also obstructing escape routes, resulting in massive casualties,” he said. Hazel Law, principal investigator of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, said they would not rule out further law enforcement operations.
“We suspect that some people, for their own personal gain, not only failed to fulfill their professional responsibilities, but even used suspected corrupt practices, fraud and other illegal acts to achieve their purposes,” Law said. Tang said Will Power directors Ng Yeuk and Wong Hap-yin, Prestige director Ho Kin-yip, alongside the two companies, were charged with manslaughter.
The companies and some of the defendants were also charged with conspiracy to defraud. Authorities allege the conspiracy goes beyond the fire site.
In one of the fraud allegations, authorities alleged that the two companies and some defendants conspired together to defraud the apartment owners of Wang Fuk Court by concealing previous litigation records of Prestige and inflating the score given to the firm in a tender analysis report. That eventually led to Prestige being awarded the renovation project at a contract worth more than 300 million Hong Kong dollars (over $38 million), they said.
Their alleged wrongdoings went beyond Wang Fuk Court. Authorities also alleged some of the accused conspired together to defraud the government by falsely claiming that the registered inspector of Will Power had carried out his duties in inspecting and supervising 86 building maintenance projects.
Tang on Wednesday said police and the Independent Commission Against Corruption arrested 35 people when they looked into the cause of the fire and potential corruption issues involving the renovation project.