A local man was arrested for scamming his mainland friend who, together with seven friends from the mainland, was keen to find a job in Macau, by claiming that he could help each of them get a local work permit (colloquially known as “blue card”), Judiciary Police (PJ) spokeswoman Lei Hon Nei said at a special press conference yesterday.
Lei said the local jobless suspect surnamed Wong is in his thirties.
According to Lei, the victim was introduced to Wong in May 2019 and Wong claimed that he could help mainlanders get local work permits to work for a local construction company by paying a 3,800 yuan (4,620 patacas) “deposit” for each application. Lei said the victim trusted Wong and gave him 35,000 yuan in the hope of getting him and seven of his friends’ blue cards. However, Lei said after Wong received the money, he kept coming up with excuses.
According to Lei, after the victim could not contact Wong anymore he decided to seek help from the police on May 5 this year.
The police arrested Wong in Nape on May 19. Lei said Wong confessed to the scam as he needed cash to cover his own debts. Lei said the police have transferred Wong to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) where he faces charges of fraud involving a large amount, officially defined as ranging between 30,000 patacas and 150,000 patacas.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokeswoman Lei Hon Lei looks on during yesterday’s regular press conference at the PJ headquarters. Photo: William Chan
