The Judiciary Police (PJ) arrested a 44-year-old mainland woman on Wednesday when she entered Macau through the Barrier Gate checkpoint for money laundering, PJ spokesman Leng Kam Lon said during a special press conference yesterday, adding that the suspect surnamed Tan was a key member of a now defunct pyramid scheme gang in the mainland.
According to Leng, Tan opened an account in a local casino in April 2017 and deposited HK$800,000 as gambling money. After winning HK$80,000, she deposited the full amount into the same account, which then “basically” had no transaction records for several years. Suspecting foul play, the casino notified the local Financial Intelligence Office (GIF), which requested the Judiciary Police to carry out an investigation in 2021. Leng said that the original amount of HK$800,000 was illegally remitted to Macau through an underground bank at Tan’s request.
The investigation found that Tan, who told the police that she is a businesswoman, was imprisoned in the mainland for five years for her involvement in a multi-level organised crime pyramid scheme in 2016, involving over 40 million yuan. Consequently, she was unable to use her casino account.
Tan was transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) yesterday, facing a money-laundering charge.
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the female ex-kingpin of a now defunct mainland pyramid scheme to a PJ vehicle outside the PJ headquarters in Zape yesterday. – Photo: Yuki Lei
