In Macau and the former boss of local junket operator Suncity Group has reportedly asserted that every one of the enclave’s licensed VIP gambling lounges had offered some form of illicit ‘side betting’.
According to a report from Inside Asian Gaming, the contention from Alvin Chau Cheok Wa (pictured) came as part of the businessman’s trial on charges that he had been locally engaged in money laundering and the promotion of illegal gambling services. The source detailed that the 48-year-old was one of eleven people arrested by Chinese police in November and subsequently transferred to Macau’s Coloane Prison pending the start of his official prosecution.
Alarming accusation:
Authorities in China reportedly later detained a further ten individuals on analogous allegations with the trial of the 21 defendants involving some 10,000 pages of evidence having kicked off from September 2. Macau’s Public Prosecutions Office is now purportedly contending that this group profited by running illegal gambling activities including ‘side betting’, which is said to involve punters surreptitiously placing much larger bets than would be represented by the chips on a gaming table.
Commonplace condition:
Inside Asian Gaming reported that Chau furthermore maintained his innocence when it came to allegations that he had facilitated access to online ‘proxy gambling’ services in Macau. Said to be particularly popular at venues in the Philippines and Cambodia, such activities purportedly involve the use of technology such as audio headsets and video links so as to allow punters to remotely place wagers within land-based casinos via cooperating stand-ins.
Geographic distinction:
Chau reportedly told prosecutors that Suncity Group had avoided running ‘proxy gambling’ at its locations in Macau but had historically offered such amenities at its lounges in the Philippines. The businessman purportedly stated that these activities are legal in this archipelago nation with his former company serving as ‘a global agency service’ that had utilized telephonic communications ‘to help customers place bets’ in lieu of running its own casinos.
