Macau junkets close out 2015 with two more entries in criminal scrapbook

Macau casino junket operators capped off their annis horriblis with a couple more incidents for the 2015 criminal scrapbook.

Last week, Macau’s Judiciary Police arrested a man who stole $157k from his junket partner in October 2013. The Macau Daily Times reported that the suspect admitted his guilt in the theft, which he said was motivated by greed.

The theft occurred after a gambling client of the junket pair won HKD 1.22m at a casino on Cotai. That same day, the client deposited his winnings in the junket operators’ bank account. The following day, the client asked the junket for his money, but the suspect decided to take the money and run, leaving his partner holding the bag and looking for justice.

Last Wednesday, the subject attempted to return to Macau from the mainland, leading to his arrest by border security. The suspect said he’d lost the stolen funds on his own gambling spree shortly after the theft, so while a jail sentence appears inevitable, restitution appears doubtful.