36 people have been sentenced to up to seven and a half years in prison for their involvement in a cross-border illegal gambling syndicate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
China.- An intermediate court in Zhenjiang province\u2019s Wenzhou has found 36 people<\/strong> guilty of belonging to a cross-border gambling syndicate. The court has sentenced them to up to seven and a half years in prison <\/strong>and issued fines of between RMB50,000 and RMB3m<\/strong>. Thirty-five defendants accepted the verdict and one will appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to China’s state broadcaster, CCTV, the syndicate allegedly led by Alvin Chau Cheok Wa <\/strong>made illegal cross-border payments and transactions worth about RMB1.16bn (US$163.5m). <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Wenzhou court stated on Friday: \u201cThe amount of money involved in these cases is particularly huge, and the syndicate has severely disrupted the country’s social order.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Starting in 2015, the syndicate set up online gambling platforms in the Philippines and other places<\/strong> to organise tours and services for Chinese residents to gamble or participate in online gambling in Macau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to CCTV, the court found the group provided cross-border currency exchange and settlement services <\/strong>and collected gambling debts through asset management companies and underground banks established by the consortium on the mainland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By November 2021, the consortium had expanded to more than 280 mainland Chinese shareholders, more than 38,000 Chinese agents and more than 60,000 players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chau was not one of 36 defendants in the three cases handled by the Wenzhou court. Charges against him are being dealt with in another case.\u00a0A separate trial of the former Suncity Group CEO<\/a> has begun in Macau, following his detention last November on charges of illicit gambling, criminal syndicate, fraud, and money laundering.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOnly two defendants partly accept charges in Suncity trial<\/h2>\n\n\n\n