A “cultural thing”: Chinese solar inverter company manager sentenced for tea bag bribe must now leave Australia

A Chinese businessman who attempted to bribe an official with a bag of tea stuffed with $20,000 will be allowed to return home to his family.

Zhu Guoxin, 40, had insisted a Clean Energy Council manager accept the tea at a meeting in the Brisbane suburb of Camp Hill on July 9, describing it as a cultural gift.

The manager discovered the money when she returned home and immediately reported the bribery attempt.

Zhu – a solar energy businessman – was arrested on July 24 as he attempted to board a flight at Sydney International Airport and was extradited to Queensland the next day.

Zhu admitted to hiding the money in the tea after the Clean Energy Council refused additional payments to “hurry up” approval of Growatt New Energy products.

The Chinese national faced Brisbane Magistrates Court on Thursday for sentencing after pleading guilty to one count of corruptly giving or offering a valuable consideration to influence favour in relation to business.

He was seeking five applications for Growatt products to receive clean energy subsidies, prosecutor Bimal Raut told the court.

Growatt is a major global manufacturer of power inverters, which convert solar-generated electricity into a form households can use.

“It seems to be planned conduct … he contacts the manager and arranges the meeting and he openly discusses the possibility of expediting his applications,” said Dr Raut, who described Zhu’s offending as “serious”.

“The manager explains she could not accept a gift … (Zhu) in a deceptive manner said it was only Chinese tea and it was a cultural thing.”

Zhu has been in custody since his July arrest.

Zhu was “viscerally ashamed” and had spent a difficult three weeks in custody, defence barrister Saul Holt told Magistrate Peter Saggers.

“He was conducting himself in a way that might be acceptable somewhere else but not here and he unreservedly apologises for that,” Mr Holt said.

Zhu planned to leave Australia immediately on release and pay for his own ticket as his business visa had been cancelled, the magistrate heard.

“The risk to the Australian community is zero,” Mr Holt said.

Zhu would never be allowed to return to Australia and would likely lose his job on his return to China, Mr Saggers heard.

Mr Saggers told Zhu he had sought an “unfair” advantage or benefit for Growatt.

Clean Energy Council approval “would stand Growatt out against the competition or give them a perceived advantage,” the magistrate said.

Mr Saggers sentenced Zhu to 12 months’ imprisonment.

But the sentence was wholly suspended immediately, due to time served, a very early guilty plea and full and frank admissions.

Zhu was looking forward to being reunited with his family in China, defence solicitor Mark Williams said outside court.

Source: AAP