Police have arrested eight thugs following a violent clash between rival Vietnamese gangsters, according to Public Security Police (PSP) spokesman Kam Ka Kit.
The eight suspects are aged between 25 and 34. Four of them – three men and a woman – are non-resident workers including a cleaner, a maintenance worker and a masseuse. Kam said the other four Vietnamese hold temporary stay permits awaiting repatriation following their involvement in a string of offences such as causing bodily harm, aiding and abetting, and drugs.
According to Kam, a resident called the PSP on 21 January at about 9:30 pm to report that a mass fight was taking place in Rua Um do Bairro Iao Hon. When PSP officers arrived at the scene, no one was there, but they found a number of weapons including a knife, water pipes and an umbrella.
After scrutinising CCTV footage, PSP officers confirmed that a number of people brandishing knives, water pipes and umbrellas had attacked each other.
Kam said PSP officers identified several suspects and arrested a Vietnamese involved in the brawl near the crime scene. The suspect told the police that the fracas was between two rival Vietnamese gangs involving a total of 12 people. They had a dispute and were “bargaining” at the scene. However, according to Kam, the suspect said that the two gangs were unable to compromise so the situation deteriorated into a mass fight with weapons.
With the help of CCTV footage, the PSP arrested another seven suspects in early February in different locations at Avenida Almirante Lacerda, Estrada Marginal do Hipódromo, Avenida Norte do Hipódromo and Rua da Barca.
PSP officers seized four ecstasy pills from the home of one of the suspects. The suspect admitted that he bought the pills at a disco in Nape for MOP 200 each. Police are still looking for four other Vietnamese suspects as well as the source of the drugs, Kam said.
According to the Macau Post Daily, the eight suspects have been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office, facing charges of possession of prohibited weapons while one of them also faces a drug-abuse charge.
