The Judiciary Police (PJ) busted a casino loansharking case on Monday, arresting three men from the mainland, PJ spokesman Chong Kam Leong said at a special press conference yesterday.
A 35-year-old suspect surnamed Zheng and a 25-year-old suspect surnamed Wang told the police that they are jobless. A 38-year-old suspect surnamed Wei claimed to be a businessman. There are two fugitives, suspects A and B.
According to Chong, the Judiciary Police (PJ) received a referral from the Public Security Police (PSP) on Monday about a loansharking and illegal imprisonment case. A middle-aged man from the mainland met suspect A on a social media platform in March. Early Monday morning, after gambling at a casino, the victim was approached by A, who proposed lending HK$50,000 in chips, with the condition that 20 percent of the winnings of each bet that was placed would be charged as “interest,” while the victim’s mobile phone would be held as collateral.
Zheng, Wang, Wei, and suspect B took the victim to a casino in Cotai to gamble. The HK$50,000 chips were held by Zheng, while the victim only placed verbal bets and did not have control over the chips. Suspect B was responsible for collecting the “interest”, while Wang and Wei kept watch over the victim. After losing all the money, the victim was taken to a hotel guestroom where he was held against his will. Later that day, when suspect B left the room, the victim managed to retrieve his mobile phone by using excuses such as contacting friends and relatives to raise money, in order to call the police.
Chong noted that the victim was charged HK$15,000 in “interest” and was held for seven hours. The police confiscated three mobile phones from the suspects.
The suspects were transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) yesterday, facing charges of false imprisonment and usury, according to Chong.
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the three hooded suspects to a PJ van outside the PJ headquarters in Zape yesterday. – Photo: Ada Lei
