Macau recorded 161 cases of illegal gambling in the first three months of 2025, up 906.3 percent from the prior-year period, according to the latest statistics announced on Wednesday 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, a fact that “contributed” to the rise in the number of incidents recorded in the first quarter of 2025, stated the authorities.
Mr Wong said on Wednesday that the new law had been “effective” in combatting such activities, as shown by the latest enforcement statistics.
According to the official, 132 cases of gaming-related unlicensed money exchange were filed in the three months to March 31, “accounting for more than 60 percent of the year-on-year increase in gambling-related crime cases”.
Secretary Wong also said that the Macau police had collaborated with the authorities in Guangdong to crack down on “multiple related criminal groups, resulting in an increase in the number of recorded cases”.
The official said the Macau police detained a total of 251 people in operations against money changers during the first quarter this year, down more than 80 percent from a year earlier, “effectively maintaining the order and security environment of the casino and surrounding areas”.
The official said Macau recorded an aggregate of 567 gaming-related crimes in first-quarter 2025, up 61.5 percent year-on-year. Mr Wong attributed the increase in the number of incidences to a recovery in the tourism and gaming industries during the reporting period.
Regarding gaming-related crimes in the first three months of 2025, the authorities recorded 152 fraud cases, up 100.0 percent from a year earlier.
Overall, the city’s police initiated 3,289 criminal case investigations in the three months to March 31, down 7.3 percent year-on-year.
The Secretary said in his Wednesday remarks 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.
