The male police officer was suspected of operating an illegal gambling stall in an industrial building in Kwun Tong, but was arrested in an anti-gambling operation by the police and arrested along with several people in the casino.
The male policeman and four others pleaded guilty to operating illegal gambling stalls in the Kowloon City Court today (11th).
The lawyer of the male policeman revealed in his plea that he owed huge debts because of his investment in Bitcoin, so he wanted to make quick money and committed a crime. He also claimed that he was only involved in casino operations for 3 days when he was arrested and did not receive any treatment.
The lawyer also pointed out that in the social events of 2019, including the airport conflict in August of the same year, the male policeman’s performance was affirmed by his superiors and he was awarded the "Best Police Officer Award." His career in the police force may be ruined by this case.
Magistrate Leung Ka-chi charged a serious crime and stated clearly that he intended to imprison him, but first obtained a background and social service order report for the defendant.
The case was postponed to November 2.
3 men and 2 women admit to operating and assisting in operating illegal casinos
Three defendants, Wu Yanfeng (police officer, 29 years old), Jiang Yongchen (unemployed, 29 years old) and Huang Junlang (student, 24 years old), were charged with operating a gambling establishment and illegally operating a prohibited group gathering premises. On April 10, 2021, a casino was operated in a unit of Fortune Industrial Building, Kwun Tong, and as the person who controlled the premises where the banned group was gathered, he knowingly allowed the banned group to gather, in violation of 599G Chapter "Prevention and Control of Diseases (Prohibition of Group Gathering) Regulations".
Two female defendants in the same case: Yang Yingqi (clerk, 24 years old) and Zhou Yantong (mentor, 21 years old), admitted to assisting in managing the casino.
Another male defendant, Yang Zifeng (insurance practitioner, 30 years old), denied obstructing the situation, saying that on the same day and at the same place, he prevented a police officer authorized under the Gambling Ordinance, namely Police Constable Chen Wenhao, from entering the premises or specified in the authorization letter. place.
When defendant Wu Yanfeng pleaded, he revealed that he committed the case because he failed to invest in Bitcoin.
(Photo by Liu Anqi)
The casino earns about 20,000 per day
According to the prosecution plan, the police conducted an anti-gambling operation on April 10 this year and entered the unit involved in the early hours of the morning. The unit is about 1,600 square feet, contains 4 poker tables and chips, and has about 30 gamblers. And 4 officials, and at the same time searched account books and Texas Hold'em gambling tools.
In the WhatsApp conversations between Wu and Jiang and Huang, the police found that they mentioned that they would take 5% of the "money money" for each game and would take turns to manage the account books. After deducting the cost, the three people would split the profit equally. The casino’s daily income was about 20,000 yuan.
The lawyer said that Wu participated in the operation for only 3 days
The barrister representing Wu pleaded that Wu was a policeman. He had been in the police force for 5 years and had a monthly income of about 30,000 yuan. He has been suspended.
Wu was born in a well-off family and studied business administration at a university. He was ashamed of committing this case and was unable to face his parents.
The casino involved only started operations at the end of March this year, but Wu officially joined the operation on April 7, and was arrested three days later. He did not share any benefits.
Won the best police officer award
The lawyer also pointed out that Wu himself is a dedicated police officer who also participated in social events in 2019 and attended events such as airport conflicts. His performance was affirmed by his superiors and he was also awarded the "Best Police Officer Award", describing him He is the rising star of the police force, but his career as a police officer is likely to be ruined by this case, which is the greatest punishment for Wu.
Committing this case after failing to invest in Bitcoin
The lawyer alleged that the defendant committed the case because he failed to invest in Bitcoin and wanted to make quick money. He also alleged that Wu failed to report his debt to the police because he was worried about affecting his future promotion.
Magistrate Leung Ka-chi said that Wu Yujiang and Huang were involved in serious crimes and that the epidemic was serious at the time. Based on the confession and plea of each person, he first asked for a report before considering sentencing.
The other two defendants who admitted to assisting in the management of the casino will be adjourned to sentence on November 2.
Case Number: KCCC 2406/2021
The male policeman was charged with operating a gambling stall and was brought to court with 12 colleagues in the same case. 7 people pleaded guilty, including two women who pleaded guilty to assisting in operating off-duty police involved in stealing chicken wings and duck breasts from the supermarket. During the operation, she suggested to the person in charge to buy a new sparrow and was accused of misconduct. The former police officer was accused of secretly photographing the former police officer after he was released from prison. Public housing mortgage claims that the unit lives with parents
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