Five local men have been nabbed for suspected gambling in a sitting-out area, while a local woman has been busted for operating a makeshift mahjong parlour, the Public Security Police (PSP) said in a statement on Tuesday.
According to the statement, the police saw five men gambling in a sitting-out area in the Ilha Verde district during a routine patrol on Monday.
The police seized a deck of cards at the scene and seized 5,200 patacas, which the police suspect was money placed on bets, from one of the men.
The suspects admitted to playing “Chinese poker” there, saying that the wagers ranged from 10 to 40 patacas each.
The statement said that also on Monday the police were tipped off that a shop in the old quarters in the city centre was being run as a makeshift mahjong parlour.
According to the statement, when the police arrived at the scene, they found four men and five women, two electric mahjong tables and betting chips suspected to be used for gambling.
The statement said that the female owner of the shop was suspected of having charged gamblers 50 patacas per person per hour, while winners needed to pay 10 patacas for each round they won.
The statement said that the five men gambling in the sitting-out area and shop owner are local residents aged between 50 and 66.
The statement said that they face illegal gambling charges. The Public Security Police has transferred the two cases to the Public Prosecution Office (MP) for further investigation.
This handout photo provided by the Public Security Police (PSP) on Tuesday shows PSP officers escorting the illegal gambling suspects to a police vehicle en route to the Public Prosecution Office (MP) on Monday.
