Macao’s Judiciary Police arrested three men on Wednesday after they were suspected of being part of a mainland Chinese criminal syndicate that engages in illegal betting via WeChat’s live stream service.
According to various local media reports, law enforcement arrested the trio in a VIP gaming room in Cotai, seizing HK$344,000 worth of chips and HK$600,000 in cash, as well as the mobile devices and earpieces that were allegedly used for illicit live-streams.
The three men were unemployed mainland Chinese individuals aged between 29 and 35, who were identified by their surnames, Wan, Li and Peng. Wan is accused of being a key member of the crime group.
All three suspects have been charged with offences relating to involvement in a criminal syndicate and illegal gambling activities. The latter carries a maximum prison sentence of 8 years.
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“We discovered the three suspects live streamed casino gambling results via mobile phones to conduct underground betting activities with others,” the chief of the Judiciary Police’s Gaming-related Crimes Division, Vong Chi Hou, said at a press conference yesterday.
According to the police, members of the syndicate would live stream the bets in the Macao VIP rooms via cell phones hidden in their clothing.
During the conference, local law enforcement officials said they had been aware of the crime syndicate since last September and allege that the group was responsible for at least 11 gambling-related crimes between August 2024 and February of this year, with table bets reaching a value of HK$790,000 and “under the table” telephone bets totalling HK$5.3 million.
Officials believe that at least 10 other alleged members of the mainland Chinese criminal syndicate still remain at large.
