Money Launderers are are all other people’s children, husbands and fathers - Macau Junket Christmas Letter to President Xi Jinping
The Asian Crime Century briefing 48
Convicted CEO of the Macau Suncity casino junket, Alvin Chan, has reportedly written an open letter to President Xi Jinping claiming that those convicted are innocent. There is no specific request made by Chau, but he asks President Xi that “We just need a fair and normal verdict.”
The handwritten plea comes as the Macau Court of Final Appeal has reportedly rejected an application for a writ of habeas corpus filed by some of the Suncity defendants, and even extended their imprisonment by three years.
To recap the case, in January 2023 Alvin Chau was found guilty of a leadership role in a criminal organisation, 103 counts of illegal gaming activities in licensed venues (under-the-table betting), 126 counts of illegal gaming activities in licensed venues (under-the-table betting), 54 counts of fraud, 3 counts of attempted fraud, and one count of illegal gaming activities (proxy betting) and was sentenced to 18 years imprisonment, whilst and 12 others were given sentences ranging from 15 years in prison to five months suspended.
In October, the Macau Court of Second Instance heard an appeal by the Suncity defendants and tripled the amount of compensation they must pay for money laundering offences to HK$25 billion (US$3.2 billion), after which an appeal was made to the Court of Final Appeal. The judges of this court reportedly agreed that defendants were involved in “triad offences” and should not be released, and then also extended their imprisonment by three years.
Although Alvin Chau was not involved in the appeal, in his letter to President Xi he stated that “On the triad allegations: throughout the trial, there was no evidence to prove that I had ordered other defendants to engage in illegal activities, and there was never any witness testimony or documents to prove that any of the defendants, including myself, had received any illegal proceeds.”
Chau states that he was arrested for “triad crimes and internet gambling” and goes on to say repeatedly “that these are not violent crimes.” There was indeed no major violence in Macau during the spectacular growth period of casino junkets after Suncity was founded by Chau in 2007. However, in a 2022 court case in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, 36 people connected to Suncity were imprisoned after being found guilty of criminal charges relating to operating illegal cross border gambling since 2007 and illegal online gambling and sports betting platforms in the Philippines since 2016.
It seems that Chau and his associates do not understand what they have done wrong. They were accused of developing around 12,000 Chinese nationals as gambling agents, organizing Chinese citizens to go to Macau casinos to gamble by promoting gambling, providing credit and transport, establishing an asset management company in China to provide services for gamblers to exchange funds for gambling chips, help collect gambling debts, assist customers in cross-border fund payment, using underground banks.
This is money laundering. Suncity, as well as many other Macau casino junkets, became illegal underground banks. They did not engage in violence and Macau prospered, but the money laundering by Macau casino junkets enabled and facilitated the transfer of huge proceeds of crime and corruption out of China to be invested around the world.
The money laundering by Macau casino junkets is clear, but the triad offences need to be clarified. T. Wing Lo and Sharon Ingrid Kwok have explained in their excellent 2016 article on Triad Organised Crime in Macau Casinos that:
“Running VIP rooms in casinos is a legitimate business in Macau, and contractors are not all triad members, but may be businessmen with triad connections. The main criteria for selecting triads to run the VIP rooms are related to the amount of capital and relationships with casinos and stakeholders. Even though triad membership is not necessarily a prerequisite to entering the business, the respondents [in a survey] admitted that triad Dor (reputation) and power is a crucial factor in winning the trust of casino management.”
The authors explained what had been known by police officers in Hong Kong and Macau as well as casino industry insiders for many years – Triad membership and/or connections have always been critical for the successful operation of casino VIP rooms and junkets in Macau.
Alvin Chau is reported to have been a member of the Macau faction of the 14K Triad society and a ‘follower’ of former 14K leader Wan Kuok Koi (aka “Broken Tooth Koi”). Alvin Chau continually pointed out the absence of violence in Macau, which LO and Kwok explained:
“Nowadays, triads are still very apparent in the gaming industry, albeit they have modified their modus operandi to suit the mainland Chinese market. For instance, they avoid gang fighting. To achieve the goal of money-making, they do not wish to scare off customers. In line with the Chinese virtue of social harmony, both casino management and triads prefer to maintain a peaceful entertaining environment in Macau.”
Chau makes extraordinary claims about his and Suncity lack of involvement in criminality, saying that “Regarding the overseas VIP room business: this is about “electronic betting” rather than “online betting”, and that “I strongly believe that I or my company have no connection with these illegal activities.”
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) defines money laundering as “the processing of criminal proceeds to disguise their illegal origin”, and explains that “this process is of critical importance, as it enables the criminal to enjoy these profits without jeopardising their source.” This is how Suncity contributed to the huge problem of criminals in China enjoying their profits by moving them overseas through Macau.
It is important that everyone involved in the Macau casino industry understands the nature of money laundering and why the gambling business cannot become illegal underground banks. There should be no recognition of the plea from anyone in Suncity for leniency. If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime.