Tom Zhou

Tom Zhou, the controversial man behind the Murrindindi hotel project at ‘Balaclava’, has been arrested and extradited to China, according to The Age (Sat., Feb. 8).

Investigative reeporter Nick McKenzie says that Zhou was detained in Vanuatu late last year but then flew to Japan and onto Fiji where he was detained again before being deported to China earlier this year.

The Age says that Fiji police confirmed on Friday that Zhou, a dual Australian and Chinese citizen, was held by immigration authorities before being flown to China.

It was previously reported that Zhou was subject to a longstanding international “red notice” arrest warrant.

Zhou was in the local headlines last year after he submitted a planning permit application to Murrindindi Shire Council for a hotel on the ‘Balaclava Station’ property on Murrindindi Rd, Murrrndindi. The permit was refused by Councillors.

Zhou had been in the national headlines after a 60 Minutes report that accused him of promoting wombat shooting holidays at Murridindi to Chinese tourists.

New laws to forbid wombat and other wildlife came into effect last Thursday (Feb. 6).

“Victorian government’s decision to overturn a legal loophole that left the animals open to being killed without a permit,” reported Samantha Dick of The New Daily.

“The amendment to the Wildlife Act 1975, which came into effect on Thursday, officially revoked a law that declared wombats unprotected in some parts of the state.

“Until Thursday, Victoria was the only state in Australia that had areas where wombats could be killed without question,” The New Daily said.

The weekend report by The Age may bring an abrupt end to the Murrindindi hotel project. Mr Zhou had a limited time period to appeal the Murrindindi Shire Council decision to refuse a planning permit.

Mr Zhou was well resourced. The Age noted that he was paid tens of millions of dollars to attract ‘high-roller’ gamblers from China to Melbourne’s Crown Casino.

Mr Zhou is said to be facing money laundering and corruption. He was said to have come under the intense scrutiny of ASIO.

“Court files allege that Zhou had a second source of funds through suspected organised crime activity, including extortion and money laundering. He has been accused in various Chinese courts of extortion, standover tactics and even arranging for acid to be thrown in a man’s face,” The Age said.

“The facts of a crime are clear and the evidence was reliable and sufficient,” according to a 2013 court filing from the Intermediate People’s Court of Wuhan province. It also alleged Mr Zhou had been “misappropriating huge amounts of money” and had “absconded abroad.”

“In around 2016, Crown banned Zhou from casino grounds due to his erratic behaviour (sources close to him say he was taking drugs, seeing prostitutes and prone to outbursts), but he was still able to run his high-roller business at the casino via sub-agents,” journalist McKenzie wrote.

“Zhou’s fate in China is likely to remain a mystery. Analysts have suggested that triads who engage in “patriotic” work for the Communist Party can receive special protection from the state,” The Age said.

The link to Nick McKenzie’s report in The Age is: https://www.theage.com.au/business/companies/crown-casino-s-mr-chinatown-arrested-and-deported-to-china-20200207-p53ysq.html?fbclid=IwAR0E14Q9jkHdrhiN827Uo-iVreAjL_veSZS6LSregrHJpMEVsC6QST_3H88