Transmac buys 25 new buses

Transmac, one of Macau’s three public bus operators, purchased 25 new buses. The new vehicles are equipped with USB ports at the back of the bus, which are available for passengers who wish to charge their mobile phones. It has been said that Transmac is the first bus company in Asia to include this feature in their vehicles. Some of the buses will commence operation on Saturday on route MT4. The company invested approximately MOP30 million in these vehicles. An additional 40 buses were ordered and will arrive at a later date, including two electric and two 18-meter-long buses.

Events commemorate May Fourth Movement

The University of Macau (UM) is commemorating the 97th anniversary of the Chinese May Fourth Movement with a series of events, which will end tomorrow, according to a report by Macao Daily News. The four-day event is organized by the UM’s Student Union. Haydn H.D. Chen said that the event allows youth leaders of universities of Greater China to expand their international perception and their cognitive abilities. On May 4, 1919, Chinese students protested against the Versailles Conference (Apr. 28, 1919) that awarded Japan territories in Shandong Province.

HK police officer under suspicion of fleeing to Macau

A Hong Kong police sergeant in command at the Wan Chai Police Station disappeared after taking HKD1.07 million-bail money from the office on Monday, according to reports by Hong Kong media. The male officer, surnamed Cheung, 43, reportedly stole the money while on duty. He arrived at the station around 7 a.m., and left four hours later. The unusual behavior drew the attention of one of his colleagues, who immediately reported the situation to his superior. Cheung reportedly came to Macau, according to Apple Daily. Late evening on the same day, the Judiciary Police (PJ) said that it had not received any requests for assistance from the Hong Kong police to search for the suspect. Cheung joined the Hong Kong police force in 1992, and was promoted to officer in command last June. He was living with his wife and 21-year-old daughter in married police quarters before his disappearance.

SJM lose GGR market share

SJM Holdings has released its selected unaudited first quarter results detailing the key performance indicators for the company. Gaming revenue of the group in the first quarter of 2016 fell by 22.8 percent year-on-year to about HKD11.02 billion, while the adjusted EBITDA of the group decreased by 32.5 percent over the same time comparison to HKD838 million.  In terms of Macau gross gaming revenue (GGR) market share, the group’s GGR accounted for 20.2 percent of the market in Q1 2016, as compared with 22.7 percent in the same quarter last year. Profit attributable to owners of the company in first quarter dropped 44.1 percent in the first quarter over Q1 2015 to HKD561 million, mainly caused by the 22.8 percent fall in gaming revenue, a statement from SJM noted.

Cross-country telecom swindlers detained in Zhuhai

Zhuhai detained 97 suspects on Sunday, including 32 Taiwanese, who were repatriated from Malaysia after being convicted of having committed telecom-based frauds, according to a report by Macao Daily News. The swindlers, comprising 71 men and 26 women aged 16 to 52, were involved in more than 100 fraudulent schemes. Their scams varied with them claiming to be from the police, the Procuratorate, or the courts. The Chinese police requested their extradition from Malaysia to the mainland because they are all mainland residents. Zhuhai deployed 210 police officers to Malaysia in order to escort the group back to China. The suspects will be prosecuted within a month.