HK teen detained in betting raid in Macau
A 15-year-old boy was among five Hong Kong residents arrested by Macau police when they raided three soccer-betting dens on Thursday night. A Macau man was also arrested.
The raids, which also covered Guangdong and Hong Kong, netted betting slips worth nearly $5 million and several computers.
'Our intelligence pointed to rampant offshore betting online, so we carried out this operation, the largest in recent years, based on our intelligence,' a police spokesman said. The boy, along with two Hong Kong men in their 20s, was arrested in a flat containing betting slips worth $1.7 million.
Separately, a 47-year-old Hong Kong man and his 43-year-old brother were arrested in a flat along with betting slips worth $1.7 million. Police believe the two betting dens belong to the same ring and target mostly Hong Kong punters.
In a third raid, a Macau man in his 50s was arrested in an apartment, where suspected soccer betting had been operating for more than two months.
'We found equipment used for betting, including telephones and cellphones, and some betting slips [worth $1.5 million],' a police spokesman said.
'After investigation we believe this centre has been active for two to three months, involving over 1 million patacas [worth of bets] every night.'
The two Hong Kong brothers in their 40s and the Macau man have been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office on a charge of operating illegal gambling business.
Initial investigation found the betting centres accepted offshore bets through telephones and the internet. The total betting value involved in the operation of the centres has yet to be revealed, pending analysis of computers confiscated.
In Hong Kong, police have closed down at least 17 illegal betting centres across the city since the start of the World Cup on June 9. Officers have arrested 36 people and seized betting slips with a face value of more than $44 million so far.
