Suspect who vanished was supervisor
Angela Leong, executive director of Macau casino concessionaire SJM Holdings, has confirmed reports that a senior junket executive may have absconded with HK$99.7 million (US$12.9 million) from the junket operation at Casino L’Arc Macau. The property, which has been open since September 2009, is one of 15 third-party managed casinos that operate under a service agreement with SJM.
According to the Macau Daily Times, a MASTV report indicates the suspect was a supervisor for several of L’Arc’s VIP rooms and reportedly had worked closely with Leong. The report, which was published in the Jornal Tribuna de Macau, said the official “was someone (Leong) trusted.”
SJM Chairman Ambrose So Shu Fai said the alleged embezzlement would not affect business and was different from the 2015 Dore Entertainment theft, in which a former cage cashier with the junket runner may have stolen as much as $250 million. The scandal caused a shakeup in the junket industry, caused dozens of investors to withdraw their funds, and eventually forced a number of VIP rooms to close down or consolidate their operations.
Union Gaming Securities Asia recently said junkets in Macau face “an even tougher 2016 than 2015,” and predicted that VIP gaming revenue would decline by 12 percent this year.
According to an ET Net News report, the money stolen from L’Arc “was originally for junket commission payment for December.” As So told TDM, “This time, the employee took away their commission and fled. It’s different from Dore’s incident in which collective investor funds were deposited in the VIP room. This incident will not influence SJM.”
However, he added, “I think they need to review the control system and how to improve the system so as to avoid any further similar cases that might occur.” The junket sector has suffered from the scandals, as well as the exodus of VIP players from Macau casinos. The Association of Gaming and Entertainment Promoters of Macau says 30 to 40 VIP gaming rooms have closed in the past six months.
