The Supreme People’s Court (SPC), China’s top judicial authority, reported that judges across the country heard approximately 27,000 criminal cases involving illegal gambling operations between January and September.
This figure represents a 10.65 percent year-on-year increase.
Over the nine-month period, Chinese courts have intensified their efforts to combat gambling-related crimes, particularly cross-border activities, as part of a broader initiative to safeguard national security and maintain social stability.
In a press release, the SPC highlighted seven typical cases to unify sentencing standards for gambling crimes, demonstrating its commitment to ensuring consistent and lawful punishment.
One high-profile case, reported in July by China’s state-owned television network CCTV, involved a cross-border gambling syndicate led by Suncity Group founder Alvin Chau. According to court documents, this syndicate processed more than RMB300 billion ($42.2 billion) in bets from Chinese gamblers between 2015 and 2019.
The Chau case has been also recognized as one of China’s Top 10 Cases of 2023 and serves as a prime example of cross-border gambling operations. The SPC spotlighted this case as typical of the issue, stressing the enormous capital outflow from China and the significant social harm it caused.
At the time, the SPC emphasized that the problem of offshore casinos and internet gambling syndicates targeting Chinese citizens had grown increasingly severe in recent years, contributing to the massive capital outflow. The SPC identified six cross-border gambling cases as particularly significant, including the Chau case.
The court revealed that Chau operated VIP rooms in several Macau casinos and established multiple online gambling platforms in the Philippines and other regions since 2015. He also recruited agents, who became integral members of the organization’s operations.
By November 2021, Suncity Group had developed over 480 shareholder-level agents, more than 280 of whom were Chinese nationals, and recruited over 60,000 ordinary agents, including 38,000 Chinese nationals. The group had also attracted over 60,000 customers from China, according to SPC data.
Chau was arrested by Macau’s Judiciary Police in November of 2021 and charged with illegal gambling and gang-related crimes. In January 2023, he was sentenced to 18 years in prison, a sentence upheld after his appeals were rejected earlier this month.
