Police have broken up a suspected “cross-border” syndicate that allegedly used an illicit money-exchange operation targeting Macau gamblers, in order to launder “at least” CNY45.6 million (US$6.7 million) in proceeds from other criminal activity.
They made a profit of circa CNY2.5 million on the laundering mechanism itself, according to a Macau Judiciary Police press briefing on Friday. It heard the group had been operating in Macau since January 2025. The enforcement operation also involved public security officers in neighbouring Guangdong, on the mainland.
Thursday saw 65 people arrested: 25 in Macau; and 40 in aggregate from Zhuhai in Guangdong and Guangxi province. That is according to local Chinese-language media outlets, citing the briefing.
The update said the group’s members were based on the mainland and specialised in telecom scams. They had assigned members to offer unlicensed money exchange to gaming patrons either in Macau’s NAPE district or Cotai districts.
Those in the alleged syndicate were said to have used forged identification documents to “gain trust” from gamblers, said the Judiciary Police.
The group did put Chinese yuan in victims’ mainland bank accounts in exchange either for Hong Hong dollars or chips that punters had acquired on the Macau side of the border. But the mainland money was allegedly ‘dirty’, having been acquired in the first place, from other scams, Friday’s briefing heard.
That is according to local Chinese-language media outlet, Tai Chung Daily, citing the update.
Some alleged victims reported their mainland bank accounts being frozen due to the illicit swap activity, local media outlets reported, citing the Judiciary Police.
Most bets in Macau casinos are denominated in Hong Kong dollars, and a majority of visitors to Macau is from the Chinese mainland, and may have their assets denominated primarily in China’s currency, the yuan.
The alleged syndicate was also suspected of having smuggled cash gained from their Macau operation back into the mainland via underground banks, as well as assigning individuals to act as couriers for multiple cross-border trips, Tai Chung Daily additionally reported.
Some members of the alleged syndicate would face charges in Macau of engagement in a criminal group, unlawful money exchange and money laundering, said the Judiciary Police.
