A series of inquiries in Australia has exposed widespread alleged money laundering and organised crime links involving two casino giants, Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment Group, leading to calls for the authorities to shut casinos.
Star chief executive Matt Bekier announced his resignation last week after a New South Wales government inquiry heard scathing allegations about practices at the firm’s Sydney casino.
His move came just a year after the resignation of his Crown counterpart, Mr Ken Barton, who also faced damaging revelations.
The inquiry heard that Star’s casino in Sydney disguised A$900 million (S$923 million) worth of gambling transactions by Chinese high rollers as hotel expenses.
One gambler, Mr Phillip Dong Fang Lee, a Chinese-Australian property developer, purchased A$2.72 billion in chips over 15 years but did not always cash them.
He lost just A$57 million, prompting inquiries into whether the casino properly checked the source of the money or investigated the possibility of money laundering.
Mr Lee admitted that he once purchased chips worth A$11 million in a single day using his China UnionPay debit card, even though the card was supposed to be used only for non-gambling purposes.
This story is from the April 07, 2022 edition of The Straits Times.
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This story is from the April 07, 2022 edition of The Straits Times.
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