Macau’s Judiciary Police (PJ) announced this morning the arrest of 26 suspects, including three active-duty Public Security Police (PSP) officers and two retired PJ officers, following a crackdown on three alleged organised crime syndicates running prostitution businesses disguised as "saunas".
"Sauna" is a customary euphemism in Macau for venues that offer commercial sex.
According to a special press conference held by the Judiciary Police, officers raided 23 locations yesterday following an investigation that began in 2019. The operation resulted in the arrest of 26 suspects from Macau, the Chinese mainland, and Hong Kong, including the alleged mastermind.
A PJ spokesperson stated at the press conference, held at the PJ headquarters, that in addition to the core suspects, a total of 381 people were taken to police stations for questioning during the operation.
Officers seized a number of account books, price lists, and a large quantity of sex work paraphernalia during the raids.
The spokesperson pointed out that the three syndicates operated under the guise of so-called spa and massage services. They allegedly recruited women from Asia and Eastern Europe to provide commercial sex, charging between 2,000 and 8,000 patacas per session, with the sex workers receiving 1,000 to 2,000 patacas each time.
The gangs’ total illicit earnings last year alone were estimated to be between 240 million and 320 million patacas each, totalling approximately 790 million patacas.
The spokesperson underlined that the active-duty and retired police officers received substantial "protection fees" to keep the syndicates informed of inspection schedules, helping the illicit businesses evade law enforcement.
In a follow-up statement, the Judiciary Police revealed the breakdown of the alleged bribes:
Criminal Organisation A: Paid no less than HK$300,000 per month to Macau Public Security Forces (FSM) personnel, and no less than HK$150,000 per month to a retired PJ officer.
Criminal Organisation B: Paid no less than HK$100,000 per month to FSM personnel, and no less than 150,000 patacas per month to a retired PJ officer.
Criminal Organisation C: Paid no less than HK$70,000 per month to security forces personnel.
The 26 suspects are aged between 36 and 68, and 23 of them are male, according to the follow-up statement.
According to Chinese-language media outlets, the total amount of bribes received by the suspects ran into tens of millions of patacas. Reports indicate that the suspects face multiple charges, including organised crime, procurement (trafficking in prostitutes), and bribery. All the suspects have, meanwhile, been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) for further questioning and the possible laying of charges.
Living off the earnings of prostitution is a criminal offence in Macau.
The Judiciary Police are Macau's criminal investigation department. The Public Security Police are the special administrative region's primary, frontline law-enforcement agency.
Caption 1: Evidence about the case is dispalyed at the Judiciary Police (PJ) headquarters in Zape this morning. Caption 2: The 26 hooded suspects are escorted by PJ officers to a van outside the PJ headquarters this morning, en route to further questioning and the possible laying of charges by the nearby Public Prosecutions Office (MP). Photos: Armindo Neves
