Syndicate Closed for Good
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FOUNDER & PUBLISHER Kowie Geldenhuys EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Paulo Coutinho www.macaudailytimes.com.mo FRIDAY T. 18º/ 21º Air Quality Moderate MOP 8.00 3427 “ THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGIN’ ” N.º 29 Nov 2019 HKD 10.00 STEVE WYNN WILL PAY $20 MILLION LOCAL ESPORTS PLAYERS HONG KONG IS CONFIDENT ITS THREE- TO SETTLE SHAREHOLDER LAWSUITS DECADE CURRENCY PEG TO THE US ACCUSING WYNN RESORTS OF COVERING STILL STRIVING TO HAVE DOLLAR WILL SURVIVE THE UNREST UP SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS THEIR CRAFT RECOGNIZED ROCKING THE FINANCIAL HUB P4 P6 P7 AP PHOTO Trump-Kim North HEART-BREAKER SCAM Korean leader Kim Jong Un and President Donald Trump have signaled their affection for each other so P2-3 regularly it might be easy SYNDICATE CLOSED FOR GOOD to miss rising fears that the head-spinning diplomatic engagement of the past LAW ENFORCEMENT two years is falling apart, with N.Korea’s firing new AGENCIES IN FOUR missiles. More on p14 JURISDICTIONS CLAIMED China-Serbia Serbian and VICTORY AFTER SHUTTING Chinese security forces are holding joint anti-terror DOWN AN INTERNATIONAL drills in the Balkan country CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION in a sign of Beijing’s growing influence in the volatile SPECIALIZING IN THE region. The drill including special police troops from ROMANCE VARIETY OF THE both countries is part of a FAMOUS ‘MACAU SCAM’ security agreement signed earlier this year. AP PHOTO Taiwan Japanese electronics manufacturer Panasonic Corp. is abandoning the semiconductor business with the sale of its last business in that sector to a Taiwanese company. Panasonic said it was transferring the semiconductor business operated by Panasonic Semiconductor Solutions Co. to Nuvoton Technology Corp. AP PHOTO Vietnam The village of Dien Thinh is bidding farewell ‘The Wall, released to two of its sons, victims 40 years ago, is of the human trafficking WAR OF WORDS tragedy unveiled last considered by month when the bodies many to be one of of 39 Vietnamese were China and US discovered in a truck in the best albums in England. This village’s rock history. But it church did double duty lock horns over marked the last time yesterday as coffins with the bodies of cousins Nguyen the core members Van Hung and Hoang Van the future of of Pink Floyd would Tiep were carried in for a record an album funeral attended by about Hong Kong 300 people. together More on backpage P2 EDITORIAL,8,13 page 2 www.macaudailytimes.com.mo MACAU 澳門 29.11.2019 fri MACAU’S LEADING NEWSPAPER editorial CRIME Paulo Coutinho Deafening silence Online dating syndicate busted, 22 arrested VER 2.9 million people of Hong RENATO MARQUES women and a man whom investment opportunities There are reports and OKong cast their vote in Sunday’s dis- the PJ suspected was the and similar reasons. evidence of the group’s trict council elections, the highest turnout criminal organization leader of the Macau opera- After the victims ac- operation going back to ever in the sister SAR’s history – in any A that sought to scam tions. The people arrested quiesced, the group’s 2015 at least, and upon poll. And over 85% voted for the pan-de- people through online in Macau were, the police operatives would trans- preliminary evaluation, mocratic camp in what was seen as a mas- communication websites informed, two local wo- fer the earnings into bank taking into account the sive show of support for the pro-democra- and mobile applications men aged 28 and 29 years accounts in several juris- complaints made by vic- cy months-long movement, shattering the has finally been exposed in old as well as a Filipino dictions, which they also tims, they are suspected theory of a “silent majority” opposing the a joint operation between national. The man now in had to open and maintain, of having swindled a total protests. Macau, Hong Kong, Singa- the custody of local autho- sending all the usernames sum of over 20 million pa- The district council members have litt- porean and Malaysian po- rities is a 35-year-old Nige- and passwords for onli- tacas in 156 known cases. le power in the city – they basically deal lice forces. rian national, whom the PJ ne banking access to the The majority of victims with traffic issues and other day-to-day A Judiciary Police (PJ) said was one of the main heads of the group in Ma- were aged between 25 and annoyances, but this time it was not only spokesperson made the members of the group. laysia. 44 years old and were se- about that. announcement yesterday At the same time, autho- This time, these elections, with origins afternoon during a special rities in Malaysia arrested dating back to 1982, were a real expression press conference from the of the reigning discontent in Hong Kong a total of 18 other people, force to reveal the details with its governance, which has its most re- 10 women and eight men, cent roots in the Occupy Central and Um- of the case. including the man who is brella movements of 2014. According to the infor- believed to be the master- For a period of six months this year the mation provided by the mind behind the syndica- MARQUES RENATO demonstrations and the protests drove the spokesperson, the crimi- te. city almost to a standstill, affecting the dai- nal group was operating The group operated via ly life of residents and tourists – the me- in several jurisdictions, social media and online tropolitan network, the airport, roads, pu- including Macau, and was dating apps, creating fake blic or private buildings, and schools, were headed by Nigerian natio- user accounts with which occupied and deranged or even shutdown nals. they would search for vic- at times while crowds clashed with police In the special three-day tims. forces to a point of chaos in this master call operation held from No- After establishing con- for full democracy. vember 18 to 21 and led tact and a virtual rela- What started as a protest for the with- by Malaysian authorities, tionship with the victims, drawal of an extradition bill, which was 22 people in total were ar- the scammers would give seen by the majority in HK as a tool to rested. Four in Macau were a range of excuses and re- control dissent or inconvenient voices, tur- arrested, including three quest money for loans, ned out to be a massive demand for the city’s authorities to introduce universal su- ffrage in the elections for the Chief Exe- cutive (CE) and for the Legislative Council (LegCo) – a promise made in the Basic Law of Hong Kong, specifically in the annexes kidnapping victim is then I and II dealing with the processes to choo- said to be a relative of the se the holders of executive and legislative victim. powers. What is the ‘Macau Scam’? In an article published As law professor António Katchi explai- ANTHONY LAM calls came to be known as theory suggests that Ma- by the BBC, Scripps Colle- ned in a debate held by TDM earlier this Macau Scams remains un- cau lends its name to the ge psychology professor, week, the HK government has the consti- E are calling from certain. According to some fraudulent behavior preci- Stacey Wood, found that tutional right to draft laws in order to de- Wthe police station. sources, it is because this sely because the scams are “even though about 60% mocratically elect the members of LegCo We have intelligence type of scam originated in so common in Macau. identified the solicitations and the Chief Executive, even as the lat- showing that you are a Macau. Other scenarios in the [of lucky draw scams] as ter would require ratification by the NPC’s suspect in a case. Failure “The term ‘Macau so-called Macau Scam likely a scam, they also Standing Committee. This would be “the to respond to it may obs- Scam’ was coined becau- fraud calls include a lucky still viewed the opportu- sensible path to follow” to meet the expec- truct your freedom of tra- se it is believed that it draw win notification or a nity as potentially benefi- tations of the people of Hong Kong and vel. For more information, originated from Macau or ransom request. cial.” end the protests, he said. press 1.” that the first victims came Victims might receive Local law enforcement In any case, the initiative of change by This is just one of many from there,” notes a report calls saying that they have entities regularly issue formal political means, within the fra- scenarios that commonly by Malaysian news outlet, won a lucky draw and they warnings against the- mework of the Basic Law, is at the will of the Chief Executive (and the establishment play out in phone scams The Star, about the scam’s need to send money to a se scams with the stated that supports it). If they do nothing, no- across South and Sou- namesake, though it qui- certain account in order purpose of educating the thing would eventually change – at least theast Asia, and which are ckly adds that, “this has to collect their prize. public not to fall for them. peacefully. increasingly being dubbed never been confirmed.” Or they might face The Macau police advise The people of Hong Kong deserve better. by international media as Police reports from the a ransom request that the public to remain vigi- They have stated over these six months, and the “Macau Scam”. Macau authorities show seems to be authentic to lant and not to panic or moreover with the outcome of the Sunday’s The number of scam that not only are such the victim.