China: Macau’s Casino Boss Alvin Chau cheats govt of USD 1 billion in taxes

Former boss of China's Macau casino junket Alvin Chau has cheated the government of USD 1 billion in tax revenues, a media report said citing the official indictment.

Alvin Chau, who is the 48-year-old founder of Suncity Group, along with 20 other senior executives ran a vast criminal syndicate, Asia Nikkie reported.

Chau was arrested in November on 286 criminal charges including fraud, money laundering and illegal gambling and might be imprisoned for decades if he is found guilty. His trial will commence on September 2.

A 224-page indictment dated May 24 accuses the former casino boss and other executives of initiating a wide-ranging criminal conspiracy that defrauded some 8.2 billion Hong Kong dollars ($1.04 billion) in tax revenue from 2013 through last year by using the company as cover, it added.

The indictment read, "Chau used the name of Suncity Group and Suncity VIP Club and disguised it as a long-term, organized and highly stable business in Macau.

The main purpose of the group was to earn illegitimate profits."

The allegations against Suncity Group claim that under-the-table betting was being carried out in the casino in an attempt to multiply the original bet by 20 times or more.

"When a gambler bets 10,000 yuan (USD 1,500) on the table, he simultaneously bets 20,000 yuan 'under the table'... If the customer wins, the casino will pay him 10,000 yuan and the company will also pay him 20,000 yuan, however, if the customer loses then he has to pay back the casino 10,000 yuan and also 20,000 yuan to the illegal gaming group," the indictment added.

The allegations also claimed that illegal gaming activities were carried out in more than 200 VIP rooms that are owned by Macao's casino operators.

The Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) states that six licensed gaming operators in Macao lost around HKD 2.08 billion in gaming revenue and Chau's operations made a profit of UKD 21.5 billion between 2013 and 2021.

Chau's lawyer and the Public Prosecutor's Office in Macau have not commented on the indictment.

An investigation into the ties of the group with other casino operations in Australia and the Philippines was carried out, and Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment Group, two major gaming companies in Australia, switched their CEOs, Asia Nikkie reported. (ANI)