Judiciary Police (PJ) Director Chao Wai Kuong said on Tuesday that gaming-related crimes increased by 33 per cent in the first five months year-on-year.
Chao made the remarks while addressing an award ceremony commemorating the 56th anniversary of the Judiciary Police at the PJ headquarters in Zape.
Chao said that despite the gaming revenue slump, there hadn’t been an increase in public security issues. However, there was a 33 per cent increase in the number of reported gaming-related cases in the first five months of the year, from 571 cases in the same period last year to 660 cases.
Chao pointed out that the increase was mainly caused by a rise in gaming-related loan sharking and false imprisonment cases, 60 per cent and triple the number respectively.
According to statistics provided by the Judiciary Police, there were 389 cases of gaming-related loan sharking, and 435 cases of gaming-related false imprisonment cases from June 2015 to May 2016. While in the same period in 2014 and 2015, the police recorded 241 gaming-related loan-sharking cases and 144 gaming-related false-imprisonment cases.
Chao also said that the police were able to limit such cases to casino premises and not have them seep into the community, adding that the majority of the victims were non-locals.
(Macau News/The Macau Post Daily)
