Bloomberg reports on the bribery charges facing heavyweight Asian art collector, Joseph Lau:

Joseph Lau, the billionaire chairman of Chinese Estates Holdings Ltd. (127), will stand trial for bribery and money laundering in Macau in connection with a land purchase in the world’s biggest gambling hub.

Lau, an avid art and wine collector, was named last month in the corruption trial of Ao Man-long, Macau’s former secretary of transportation and public works, in relation to land being developed by Chinese Estates in the only Chinese city where casinos are legal. Ties between Hong Kong tycoons and government officials have come under scrutiny since the arrest in March of the co-chairmen of developer Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd.

“Macau is a small place and the ties between business and the political establishment are very close,” said Joseph Cheng, a professor of political science at City University of Hong Kong. The government is sending “a warning to all those involved in corruption and bribery.”

Chinese Estates Chairman Charged With Bribery In Macau (Bloomberg)