All the defendants, who are present in the trial linked to the now-defunct Macau junket operator Suncity Group, finished testifying on Wednesday (today), and only two have admitted part of their charges since the court proceedings officially began on 19 Sept.
The trial, which is being heard by the Macau Court of First Instance, is now moving to the next stage, with witnesses to take the stand starting from Thursday (tomorrow).
A total of 21 defendants—including former Suncity boss Alvin Chau Cheok Wa—are indicted for illicit gambling activities, involvement in a criminal syndicate, frauds and money laundering, causing the Macau SAR government a loss of HK$8.2 billion (US$1 billion) in gaming tax revenue between March 2013 and March 2021, as well as losses for the city’s gaming operators. Only 10 defendants have been present in the proceedings after the case began earlier this month.
The 10th defendant to take the stand, Vincent Loi, former assistant vice president of VIP service at the now-defunct junket operator, denied on Wednesday he had helped manage funds and operations for the criminal syndicate headed by Mr Chau to run illicit gambling activities like online and proxy betting.
Proxy betting refers to gamblers giving instructions via telephone or other gadgets online to another person, known as a proxy, who helps them to place a bet on a brick-and-mortar casino.
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Suncity trial — All defendants finish testifying, only two admit part of charges
