Ex-Macau junket boss’ son to plead guilty in US

[EndoftheWorld]

Ex-Macau junket boss’ son to plead guilty in US

Duo accused of running illegal World Cup betting operation from Las Vegas hotel

PUBLISHED : Saturday, 07 March, 2015, 2:00am
UPDATED : Saturday, 07 March, 2015, 2:00am

Bryan Harris [email protected]

Paul Phua and his son Darren last summer. Photo: AP

The son of a multimillionaire former Macau junket operator is set to plead guilty in a high-profile illegal gambling case that has grabbed headlines worldwide.

Darren Phua, 23, was expected to make the plea before a judge yesterday morning, local time, in Las Vegas, where he and his father - world-ranking poker player Paul Phua Wei-seng - stand accused of running an illegal soccer World Cup betting operation out of luxury villas in the famous Caesars Palace hotel.

The younger of the two Malaysians would plead guilty to a lesser misdemeanour charge related to transmission of gambling information and would forfeit US$125,000, the Las Vegas Review Journal reported on Thursday, citing lawyers and court papers.

The move would leave his father - who US federal agents also allege is a member of Hong Kong's notorious 14K triad - to fight the charges alone.

The case received widespread attention when it took on an international political dimension. In December, Malaysian Home Affairs minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi came under fire after vouching for the elder Phua in a letter to the FBI.

In the document, revealed by the South China Morning Post, Zahid denied Phua was a member of the 14K and said the 51-year-old poker star was assisting the government with issues of national security.

Darren Phua decided to plead guilty because he was homesick and wished to return to his family and friends in Malaysia, the Review Journal reported.

The plea would likely see him sentenced to probation and deported from the United States.

Five former defendants in the case from Malaysia and China received similar sentences after making pleas in December.

The latest plea is unexpected as it follows a recent recommendation by a judge that the bulk of the evidence against the father and son be thrown out.

Last month, US Magistrate Judge Peggy Leen ruled that FBI agents had violated the US constitution by making misleading statements to obtain a search warrant for a raid on Phua's hotel villa.

Prosecutors have objected to the non-binding findings. However, if the recommendation is upheld, they will be forced to pursue the case without using a glut of evidence - including computer and phone records - seized during the raid.

The trial is set for April 14.