Alvin Chau
Quick Facts
Biography
Alvin Chau Cheok-wa (Chinese: 周焯華; Jyutping: zau1 coek3 waa4), nicknamed Sai Mai-wa (Chinese: 洗米華; 'wash rice Wah'), is a Macanese-born businessman and founder of Suncity Group.
Career
Chau is the founder and CEO of Suncity, the largest junket operator in Macau. At times, the company controlled almost 50% of the VIP gaming business in Macau.
Chau is a former member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference's Guangdong Provincial Committee.
Prosecution
On November 28, 2021, Chau was arrested on a warrant issued by the city of Wenzhou. The arrest warrant was based on allegations of illegal cross-border casino operations and money laundering. Along with Chau, ten alleged accomplices were arrested. Within a week of Chau's arrest, Suncity closed all of its VIP rooms in Macau.
He was convicted in January 2023 of leading a criminal syndicate, and running illegal gambling and fraud operations, and sentenced to 18 years in prison.