The vice chief of Macau’s Public Security Police (PSP) is among 26 people arrested after the city’s Judicial Police (PJ) busted three prostitution rings last week, according to local media.
Apart from PSP Deputy Commissioner Leong Heng Hong, 60, the PS also arrested two other serving PSP officers and two retired PS officers, Macau Business reported on monday.
The other two PSP officers are a 51-year-old acting department head surnamed Chan and a 54-year-old officer surnamed So.
According to a PJ STATEMENT issued on Saturday, officers raided three sauna locations, five offices and 23 other locations on Friday.
They arrested 24 men and two women, aged 39 to 68, comprising 18 Macau residents, six Chinese residents and two Hong Kong residents.
“The three criminal syndicates were found to have engaged in manipulated prostitution from 2016 to 2024, respectively, receiving illegal income ranging from approximately 230 million to 320 million lek,” PJ said.
Each union had been offering bribes to the law enforcement personnel involved every month, he added.
“The above-mentioned current public security force personnel had benefited not less than HKD 470,000 every month, while the two retired Judicial Police personnel (had benefited) not less than HKD 300,000 every month.”
Preliminary investigations showed that syndicates recruited Asian and Eastern European women to engage in prostitution.
Twelve suspects, including PSP officers, have been remanded in custody.
Two Hong Kong residents – a 39-year-old man surnamed Cheuk, said to be a shareholder of the sauna, and a 41-year-old woman surnamed Lam, said to be a sauna worker, were also arrested.
The other 14 suspects, including two retired PJ officers, were released on bail.
The case has been passed to the Public Prosecution for further investigations, according to a STATEMENT released from the office on Sunday.
