Macau arrests 11 people for alleged illegal gambling and money laundering

LET group

28/11/2021 11:22

HONG KONG, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Macau police have arrested 11
people in an investigation into an illegal gambling and money
laundering syndicate, according to an official WeChat account, a
day after junket mogul Alvin Chau https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-wenzhou-issues-arrest-warrant-macau-junket-mogul-chau-2021-11-27
 was questioned at a Macau police station. 
    At a Sunday press conference Macau's judiciary police did
not name the individuals but said they included a 47-year-old
Macau businessman surnamed Chau, Hong Kong's South China Morning
Post reported. 
    It was not clear if this was Alvin Chau, who was listed as
46 in March when Suncity Group Holdings Ltd  1383.HK , of which
he is chairman, published its 2020 results. 
    He is the founder of a separate legal entity also called
Suncity, the special administrative region's biggest junket
operator, which operates VIP gambling rooms across Asia. Junket
operators are go-betweens who bring high rollers to play at
casinos, extending them credit and collecting on their debts.
    The junket operator could not be reached for comment.
Representatives of the Hong Kong-listed company could not be
reached by phone and did not respond to email inquiries seeking
comment on the company's or Chau's behalf.
    A Macau judiciary police duty spokesperson did not respond
to phone calls seeking comment. 
    People involved in the case acknowledged the group had
operated gambling websites or telemarketing activities in other
places, Macau police said in the WeChat statement.
    Authorities in the eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou said on
Friday an investigation had found Alvin Chau formed a junket
agent network in the mainland to help citizens engage in
offshore and cross-border gambling activities.
    The Macau government said on Saturday that he was taken to
the police station for questioning, based on earlier evidence
and after it received a notification about the arrest warrant
from the mainland authorities. 
    GGRAsia, a news outlet on the Asia casino industry, quoted a
Suncity spokesperson as saying by email early on Saturday: "All
businesses are normally operating in accordance with the law and
under the supervision of the Macau Special Administrative Region
Government."    

 (Reporting by Alun John; Editing by William Mallard)
 ((alun.john@thomsonreuters.com;))