But gaming-related cases rise 75.5 pct in Jan-May
The Judiciary Police (PJ) investigated 579 gaming-related cases in the first five months of this year, a year-on-year growth of 75.5 percent, of which gaming-related fraud cases increased by 66.7 percent year on year and were “closely” related to currency exchange gangs, PJ Director Sit Chong Meng said in a speech on Friday, adding that the total number of suspected crime cases the Judiciary Police probed between January and May this year accounted for 5,901, a year-on-year increase of 28.8 percent, among which gaming- and tourism-related crimes were on the rise in particular.
Sit was quick to add that thanks to the Ministry of Public Security’s “strong” support in eliminating the “hidden” dangers posed by currency exchange gangs, Macau has seen a decline in the number of crimes involving such gangs in recent months, noting that 1,942 illegal currency exchange non-local suspects were intercepted by the Judiciary Police in conjunction with the Public Security Police (PSP) in the first five months of this year, and all have been barred from entering Macau, with 927 banned by the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) to enter casinos, while 30 local residents caught engaging in illegal currency exchange activities have been fined by the Macau Monetary Authority (AMCM).
Sit said: “Public security authorities across the mainland have thoroughly cracked down on this grey industry, and they have achieved remarkable results,” adding that the Judiciary Police will “actively” cooperate with the mainland public security authorities in special operations to combat all the illegal currency exchange activities at the source.
Sit noted that the number of usury and related false imprisonment cases recorded in the first five months of this year stood at 104 and 17, representing an increase of 86 and 14 cases respectively: “This is mainly due to the fact that the Judiciary Police have taken the initiative to detect and step up its efforts in combating loansharking crimes.”
According to Sit, among the total of 5,907 suspected crime cases that the Judiciary Police probed in the first five months, 1,396 suspects were transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) for further investigation, a year-on-year growth of 57 percent. In the same period, 15 robberies were recorded, about the same number year on year, while 369 thefts were investigated, an increase of 122 cases year on year.
In terms of telecom and online fraud cases, the Judiciary Police investigated, Sit noted, a total of 1,035 cases between January and May this year, a year-on-year increase of 43 percent, of which phone scams accounted for 166, mainly involving the “impersonation of government officials”, followed by “guess who I am”. There were 321 online fraud cases, an increase of 12.2 percent year on year, including 221 computer fraud cases involving the unauthorised use of credit cards mainly due to phishing SMSes and websites, a year-on-year growth of 88.9 percent.
Sit noted that the Judiciary Police, in conjunction with their counterparts elsewhere and the local banking sector, stopped suspicious remittances totalling 25 million patacas in the first quarter of this year, among which, in the first five months of this year, based on the Judiciary Police’s notification mechanism, the mainland police froze 277 bank accounts, recovering fraudulent funds amounting to 9.23 million yuan. The stolen funds were returned to the victims in accordance with legal procedures.
In his speech delivered during an award ceremony recognising 18 PJ officers for their outstanding performance at the PJ headquarters in Zape on Friday, Sit also said that the Judiciary Police are now working diligently on this year’s drug-related legislative amendments, including a proposal to control etomidate, which is becoming more and more popular in the mainland, adding that from January to May this year, the Judiciary Police probed 20 drug-trafficking cases and five drug-abuse cases, the numbers of which are comparable to the same period last year.
The short-acting anaesthetic etomidate has been placed under control in the Chinese mainland since last October, according to China Daily. Once a drug is put on the mainland’s control list, the public security authorities can crack down on its illegal production and trafficking.
Judiciary Police (PJ) Director Sit Chong Meng delivers a speech during Friday’s award ceremony at the PJ headquarters in Zape. – Photo courtesy of PJ
