Taiwan’s Criminal Investigation Bureau has dismantled a Macau-linked money laundering operation that processed approximately NT$330 billion ($1 billion) in illicit funds within a year, according to local media reports.
Authorities said the scheme was orchestrated by a 31-year-old suspect, who recruited individuals to act as money mules and exploited credit card overpayment mechanisms to move funds through Macau casinos. The case has been formally indicted by the Yunlin District Prosecutors’ Office following a series of coordinated arrests across Taiwan.
Investigators found that the group worked in coordination with the Jiuzhou casino gambling network to channel illegal proceeds overseas. Funds were first routed through shell company accounts and transferred into personal credit card accounts as overpayments, artificially increasing available credit limits. Recruited participants were then sent to Macau, where they reportedly used the cards to purchase casino chips, which were quickly converted into cash.
Participants in the scheme received commissions of between 1 percent and 2 percent, along with incentives such as travel perks and reward points. In one case, a single money mule processed NT$19 million ($575,000) in transactions within just 10 days.
Police said the operation laundered NT$330 billion ($1 billion) between mid-2024 and mid-2025. Authorities conducted four waves of raids across northern, central, and southern Taiwan, arresting 20 suspects and seizing related evidence.
