Ten local suspects – the alleged kingpin and a key member of a local gang as well as eight fake employers – have been arrested for their involvement in a fake employment scheme which targeted non-resident workers for more than two years, Public Security Police (PSP) spokesman Kam Ka Kit said during a regular press conference yesterday.
According to Kam, the gang approached senior citizens in public parks and sitting-out areas and paid them between 6,000 and 17,500 patacas to act as employers.
The gang arranged fake employment contracts and long-term work permits for non-local domestic helpers.
The police are still looking for other gang members and bogus employees involved in the case.
The 58-year-old kingpin of the gang surnamed Chan told the police that he works as a clerk. The 52-year-old key member surnamed U told the police that he works as a logistics worker. The eight fake employers are aged between 56 and 68.
According to Kam, the case was discovered when the Exit-Entry Control Department of the Public Security Police (PSP) examined a number of employment contracts of non-resident workers between February last year and last month.
The department discovered that 10 “employers” submitted employment applications for non-resident workers at the same time through U, the gang’s key member, who acted as a “middleman”. They mostly applied for domestic helper.
An in-depth investigation showed that the employment contracts were fakes, according to Kam, who said the police believe that Chan – the alleged kingpin – and U were paid by the non-resident workers to arrange the bogus contracts for them so that they could stay in Macau.
Kam said that based on information provided by the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL), the police recently questioned Chan, U and the eight suspected “fake employers”. Chan denied any wrongdoing and refused to cooperate in the investigation.
According to Kam, U confessed that he received an “intermediary” fee of 500 to 1,000 patacas each time for assisting in the employment application procedures at the respective government entities. U also admitted that he “hired” a number of senior citizens to act as employers.
Kam said that a Vietnamese woman, who is on the run, helped to look for non-locals who intended to “buy” bogus employment contracts so that they could stay in Macau for a long period of time. The woman allegedly helped to collect the work permits (informally known as “blue cards”) and “intermediary” fees for U.
U told the police that he merely followed Chan’s instructions. According to Kam, the police have launched a manhunt for the Vietnamese woman and other possible gang members.
The Public Security Police said in a follow-up message after yesterday’s press conference that 16 fake employees involved – one male and 15 females – aged between 23 and 54 are involved in the case, all of them domestic helpers, including a Vietnamese man, while the women comprise a Filipina, an Indonesian, a Korean three Nepalis and nine Vietnamese. The police are still looking for all of them.
The Public Security Police took action last Thursday when they caught Chan, U and the eight fake employers.
The 10 suspects were transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) last Friday for further investigation, all of them facing forged document charges.
This handout photo provided by the Public Security Police (PSP) yesterday shows PSP officers escorting the 10 fake employment scheme suspects to the Public Prosecution Office (MP) in Nape last Friday.
