The police have discovered 18 illegal immigrants and 4,713 other people overstaying in Macau after the expiration of their tourist visas, the Office of the Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak, revealed in a reply to an inquiry from lawmaker Ella Lei.
These figures pertain to the period between January and April of this year and are a result of police operations that tackle these cases, such as daily police patrols, police operations, community police liaison mechanisms, and hotel police liaison mechanisms, among others.
In the same written response, the Office of Wong noted that, regarding the cracking down on illegal accommodation, the Public Security Police Force (PSP) conducts crime prevention operations on-site and on social media platforms. They collect intelligence through different channels that lead to onsite operations, usually in collaboration with the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO).
“From January to April 2023, the PSP conducted 19 operations to crack down on illegal hotels, involving a total of 47 establishments, of which 12 were already confirmed to be illegal by the Tourism authorities.” Eight more were added in the period to May 21.
In total, 52 units were inspected, with 19 of them being sealed on suspicion they were being used as illegal accommodation. The MGTO is initiating procedures against those who violate the law. RM
