A mainlander was arrested on Thursday for stealing HK$38,500 in cash from a female gambler in a casino in Cotai last month, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Choi Ian Fai said at a regular press conference yesterday.
The 41-year-old suspect surnamed Du told the police that he works as a salesman.
According to Choi, a businesswoman from the mainland who is in her thirties reported to the police on March 11 that someone had stolen HK$38,500 from her when she was gambling in a casino that night.
She told the police that she put a stack of Hong Kong dollar notes on her lap when she was playing baccarat. She discovered only after a few minutes that the notes worth HK$38,500 had fallen on the floor and then vanished.
The Judiciary Police scrutinised the casino’s CCTV footage which showed that two men picked up the cash. They also confirmed that the duo had left Macau the following day. The Public Security Police arrested Du when he re-entered Macau on Thursday via the Barrier Gate checkpoint. Du admitted to the crime and told the police that he had shared half the stolen money with his accomplice and spent his share on “daily expenses”, according to Choi.
The spokesman added that at the time of the press conference the Judiciary Police were still looking for the other suspect and the money he stole.
Du has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP), facing an aggravated theft charge, according to Choi.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Choi Ian Fai poses during yesterday’s regular press briefing at the pressroom of the Public Security Police (PSP). Photo: Camy Tam
