‘Crime syndicates exploiting casino facility to launder money’ allegation

PUTRAJAYA: Organised crime syndicates are believed to be laundering money by exploiting a facility offered by casinos to tour companies, according to a senior police officer.

DSP Foo Wei Min, senior investigation officer with the Bukit Commercial Crime Investigation Department, said these syndicates were abusing the ‘junket account’ facility provided by most casinos.

The junket account is a genuine business facility offered by casinos to tour companies registered with them.

The casinos pay commissions to the tour companies for bringing customers, he said at the two- day seminar on anti-money laundering organised by the AttorneyGeneral’s Chambers here.

Foo, who specialises in forensic accounting, said the syndicates registered as tour companies organised trips to casinos in Cambodia, Singapore, the Philippines and as far away as Europe.

“Their customers are not ordinary gamblers. They lure individuals holding key positions in corporate companies and offer them credit facilities to gamble. It’s basically a system where you play (gamble) first and pay later,” he said.

Foo explained that the money offered to the gamblers was usually from the ill- gotten gains of the syndicates and when these gamblers lose at the casinos - which is usually the case - they have to pay back the money, now laundered. — Bernama