MACAU: A Macau Customs Service (SA) inspector was found to have accepted bribes from an individual who was allegedly active in casinos and who requested that the inspector use his powers to set his client free from detention.
According to a press release from the Commission Against Corruption (CCAC), the Customs inspector had allegedly facilitated the release of an incoming passenger at the Cotai checkpoint, who had been intercepted for carrying cash exceeding the statutory amount.
The suspect, surnamed Lok, then made contact with the requester through a middleman and the chief officer of the Macau Prison. Having accepted the bribe, he released the detainee under his authority.
The Macau Prison chief, surnamed Wong, also faces prosecution. The Times reported in March that Wong was taken into custody and was later suspended from public duties whilst under investigation from the CCAC.
CCAC yesterday uncovered another case involving a Marine and Water Bureau official, who had allegedly committed passive corruption to perform illicit acts and abuses of power.
During its investigation into the case involving a leader of the Marine and Water Bureau, the CCAC discovered that yet another bureau chief had, between 2012 and 2015, repeatedly abused his powers to solicit and receive illicit benefits from a person in charge of a ferry services company. The second chief’s benefits included free ferry tickets, hotel accommodation and food and beverages. He had allegedly asked the company to secure jobs for his relatives and friends, and to reserve shops at the Outer Harbor Ferry Terminal for them to ply their trade.
CCAC said the suspect had abused his position on multiple occasions to conceal the ferry services company’s irregular practices, as the latter did not comply with the regulations set by the the Marine and Water Bureau.
