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Alvin Chau

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alvin Chau Cheok-wa
周焯華
Born (1974-05-30) May 30, 1974 (age 50)
Macau
NationalityPortugal
People's Republic of China
Other namesSai Mai-wa
OccupationBusinessman/mafia
Spouses
  • Yang Su-mei
Heidi Chan
(m. 2002)
PartnerMandy Lau (2014-2019)
Children7

Alvin Chau Cheok-wa[1] (Chinese: 周焯華; Jyutping: zau1 coek3 waa4), nicknamed Sai Mai-wa (Chinese: 洗米華; lit. 'wash rice Wah'), is a Macanese-born businessman and founder of Suncity Group.

Career

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Chau is the founder and CEO of Suncity, the largest junket operator in Macau.[2]: 303  At times, the company controlled almost 50% of the VIP gaming business in Macau.[2]: 303 

Chau is a former member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference's Guangdong Provincial Committee.

Prosecution

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On November 28, 2021, Chau was arrested on a warrant issued by the city of Wenzhou.[2]: 302  The arrest warrant was based on allegations of illegal cross-border casino operations and money laundering.[2]: 302  Along with Chau, ten alleged accomplices were arrested.[2]: 302  Within a week of Chau's arrest, Suncity closed all of its VIP rooms in Macau.[2]: 302 

He was convicted in January 2023 of leading a criminal syndicate, and running illegal gambling and fraud operations, and sentenced to 18 years in prison.[3][4][5][6]

References

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  1. ^ Ng, Kang-chung; Lam, Jeffie (2021-11-28). "Macau police arrest casino junket boss Alvin Chau, 10 others over alleged gambling offences". 南華早報. Archived from the original on 2022-02-19. Retrieved 2022-01-30.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, Tim (2023). Betting on Macau: Casino Capitalism and China's Consumer Revolution. Globalization and Community series. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-1-5179-0031-1.
  3. ^ "創立及領導犯罪集團等罪成 太陽城前主席周焯華判監18年". 東方日報. Yahoo. 2023-01-18. Archived from the original on 2023-01-20. Retrieved 2023-01-18.
  4. ^ "周焯華旗下太陽國際蝕6073萬". 2018-06-26. Archived from the original on 2019-03-30. Retrieved 2018-08-10.
  5. ^ "【洗米華】太陽世紀:改名後擬注入太陽城集團業務". 2017-03-31. Archived from the original on 2019-04-26. Retrieved 2018-08-10.
  6. ^ "周焯華判監18年 逾百項控罪罪成、加重清洗黑錢罪不成立". 香港經濟日報. 2023-01-18. Archived from the original on 2023-01-18. Retrieved 2023-01-18.