'House sister' denies charge of faking ID

Gong Aiai, known as "House Sister," suspected of owning multiple properties under false identities, is taken to court in Yulin city, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, Sept 24, 2013. (Photo: Xinhua)

A woman suspected of owning multiple properties under forged identities denied the charges against her at a court in northeast China's Shaanxi province on Tuesday.

Gong Aiai, whose alleged activities have earned her the nickname "House Sister" in China, was charged with forging and trading official documents at the trial at the People's Court of Jingbian County.

The prosecution alleged that Gong, former deputy head of the Shenmu County Rural Commercial Bank in Yulin City, spent 300,000 yuan to purchase two household registration IDS for herself and her daughter in 2005 in order to buy houses in Beijing. Gong allegedly forged two ID cards under the names Gong Xianxia and Gong Aiai in 2007 and 2008, respectively.

Gong, a native of Shenmu County, argued that she was unaware that it is illegal to possess multiple hukou IDs, a household registration record unique to each Chinese citizen, but she apologized for her behavior.

The trial closed at around 11:10 a.m. and the verdict will be delivered at a later date.

In January, online whistleblowers revealed that Gong, who later became known as "House Sister" among the public, held more than 20 Beijing properties worth an estimated 1 billion yuan (159.4 million US dollars) under the names Gong Aiai and Gong Xianxia.

Beijing police later confirmed that Gong owned 41 properties in the city, totaling 9,666.6 square meters.

She was later found to have acquired properties in other areas, including Shenmu.

Investigations found that Gong was a contracted bank employee, but not a civil servant. She tendered her resignation as deputy head of the bank in June 2012, and the board approved her resignation request on Jan. 2, 2013.