Five individuals have been arrested by the Macau Judiciary Police (PJ) on charges of swindling a casino and fellow players out of at least HK$1.8m. The arrests were made in connection with the discovery of 585 counterfeit casino chips, with a collective value of HK$5.85m.

At a special press briefing held on Tuesday, Tang Kam Va, Chief of PJ's Gaming-related and Economic Crimes Investigation Department, revealed that the fake chips, valued at least HK$10,000 each, were “of exceptionally high quality and nearly impossible to differentiate from genuine ones.”

The investigation was initiated following a report from a Cotai-based casino, which alerted authorities to the presence of counterfeit chips within their establishment.

Acting swiftly, PJ officers, assisted by casino security personnel, apprehended five suspected members of the alleged scam ring on-site. The suspects, ranging in age from 21 to 28, were detained along with the seized counterfeit chips.

Despite the arrests, authorities have disclosed that three additional suspects believed to be associated with the scam remain at large.