US trade union calls for investigation into SunCity Group
The International Union of Operational Engineers has called for a US federal investigation into junket operator SunCity Group and its link with US gaming companies.
Macau.- A US union, the International Union of Operational Engineers Local 501, has called for an investigation into junket operator SunCity Group and the links it had with US gaming operators. In letters to several US federal authorities, Local 501 highlighted public disclosures about Suncity Group and its owner, Alvin Chau Cheok Wa.
Last November, Alvin Chau Cheok Wa, CEO of Suncity Group Holdings, was arrested over cross-border gambling and money laundering accusations.
Local 501 also noted that regulators in the Australian state of New South Wales had previously cited information from a U.S. government report linking Chau to organised crime, pointing to an incident in which local casino officials found $5.6m in cash at the SunCity high roller.
The union stated: “Concerns over Chau’s SunCity operations have geopolitical concern for US authorities.”
It added: “In 2016, testimony from Philippines Senate proceedings revealed that a Chau-controlled SunCity VIP room received tens of millions of dollars stolen in the infamous $81m heist from the Bangladesh Central Bank account held at the New York Federal Reserve.
“North Korean state-sponsored hackers reportedly orchestrated the theft. Public reporting also recently uncovered a major joint venture between Alvin Chau and China’s largest state-run conglomerate, CITIC.
“These findings should alarm U.S. officials. Multiple U.S.-based casino licensees with overseas operations have for years collaborated extensively with Chau’s SunCity Group to bring high roller gamblers to their properties and accommodate exclusive SunCity-branded VIP rooms inside their casinos.”
See also: Woman receives jail sentence in Suncity investigation
