SYDNEY — The Chinese authorities have formally arrested three Australian employees of the casino operator Crown Resorts who had been detained in mid-October in an investigation into the promotion of gambling in China.
The three, who were not named in a short news release on Wednesday by Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, were detained along with 15 other Crown Resorts employees after police raids in China on Oct. 13 and 14. In China, the police can hold people in custody without placing them under arrest or filing charges.
“The Australian government has now been formally notified of the arrest of three Australian Crown employees on suspicion of gambling offenses,” the statement said. It added that consular officials had visited the Australians in Shanghai, but it gave no details about the remaining 15 employees. The local news media reported that one Crown employee had been released.
Crown Resorts, one of Australia’s largest hotel and casino companies, has operations in Melbourne and Perth and has plans to open a huge casino resort on Sydney’s harbor. It also has casinos in London, Macau and Manila. A company spokeswoman declined to comment on the arrests.
Details of the charges the Australians may face will not be known until later in the legal process. Chinese law allows those arrested to be held in custody throughout.
Casinos are not allowed to advertise in mainland China, where gambling is illegal, but Crown and other companies can promote high-end resorts and other tourist attractions. They also frequently offer big-spending gamblers help in obtaining visas, and free hotel rooms, chartered jets and private gambling as inducements to visit.
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