Macau recorded 137 cases of illegal gambling in full-year 2024, a 389.3-percent increase on the 28 identified in the previous year, according to the latest statistics announced on Thursday by the city’s Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak (pictured centre).
The “Law to Combat Crimes of Illegal Gambling”, in effect from October 29, has been described as an “important legal basis” for the Macau authorities to crack down on gaming-related crime.
The new law also criminalises unlicensed money exchange for gambling purposes. The police have initiated a total of 89 cases under this provision last year, stated Mr Wong.
The official said Macau recorded an aggregate of 1,456 gaming-related crimes in 2024, up 31.5 percent from 2023. Mr Wong attributed the increase in the number of incidences to a recovery in the tourism and gaming industries throughout the year.
The figure for full-year 2024 was down 32.5 percent compared to 2019, the last trading year before the Covid-19 pandemic, showed the data.
Mr Wong said that was due to the preventive and suppressive measures targeted by the police force. He added that the security risks spawned by the industry were preventable and controllable.
The Secretary said additionally that Macau’s security authorities would continue to monitor closely the changing trends of crimes related to gaming, and continuously strengthen and optimise preventive and suppressive work, and adjusting law enforcement arrangements as appropriate.
Regarding gaming-related crimes last year, the authorities recorded 333 fraud cases, 169 of them involving unlicensed money exchange. The number of gaming-related fraud incidents was up from 258 cases in 2023.
The police said there were 70 cases in 2024 related with creating illegal gambling websites, up from 20 such cases in the previous year.
Overall, the city’s police initiated 14,298 criminal case investigations, a year-on-year increase of 6.0 percent; and a 0.8-percent rise compared to 2019.
Mr Wong said the overall crime numbers in Macau in 2024 saw increases compared to 2023 and 2019, mainly due to an ongoing rise in fraud and computer crime.
Macau recorded 137 cases of illegal gambling in 2024, up 389pct y-o-y: govt
