FCC turns-up the heat on Best Wok

A Westville, New Jersey resteraunt that used the two meter ham band to dispatch its delivery vehicles may be out of business, but its escapades have not been forgotten by the FCC.

And now the agency has affirmed a $10,000 fine against a now-closed Best Wok Chinese restaurant and its owner for alleged unlicensed operation of a radio transmitter.

Those of you who have been following the saga of Best Wok will remember that the FCC issued a $10,000 Notice of Apparent Liability to the resteraunt and its owner Pang Cheng. This after repeated warnings to stop using a so-called long range cordless telephone that operated on
145.8376 Mhz. The agency even sent out an inspector who told the people running Best Wok that using the phone was a violation of FCC rules and that penalties could be severe.

But Best Wok continued and was issued the N-A-L. Owner Pang Cheng did file an appeal claiming that the unlicensed operation was unintentional and caused little unterference. But on February 9 the Commission denied it.

In its Memorandum, Opinion and Order, the FCC said that any use of Amateur Service frequencies for business communications creates a great potential for harmful interference to authorized Amateur Service communications and that the FCC must take the strongest action it can because failure to do so would only encourage others to engage in the same conduct. And in this case, it has.

Best Work and its former owner were given the usual 30 days from the release of the order to pay the fine or it will be turned over the Department of Justice for collection. (FCC)

Henry Feinberg, K2SSQ, Amateur Radio Newsline, New Jersey.

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