Macau suspects in $134m cross-border sports betting case

In a collaborative operation by Macau, Hong Kong, and mainland China authorities, an illegal internet sports betting organization that is believed to have accepted bets totaling MOP1.08 billion (US$134.2 million) since 2016—including MOP72 million per week during the ongoing Euro 2024 soccer tournament—has been shut down.

According to a briefing by the Macau Judiciary Police, 93 people were detained: 50 in Macau, including a Macao Customs official; 42 on the Chinese mainland; and one in Hong Kong.

The mainland suspects, who were held in the adjacent province of Guangdong, Macau, were said to have handled bets totaling CNY80 million (US$11.0 million). An accused male in Tuen Mun, Hong Kong, is being held on suspicion of allowing money laundering through the use of a bank account.

Cash worth MOP8 million was purportedly taken from possession in Macau.

The authorities claimed that they were investigating after receiving information related to a money laundering case from 2022.

Original Story by: GGRAsia