On Tuesday, January 13, 2026, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested Chinese citizen and wealthy businesswoman Lijie Cui, who is a major shareholder in a luxury casino in Saipan. Some Chinese media outlets revealed that she is also known as the mother of the boyfriend of Taiwanese actress Wu Peici.
According to the local newspaper “Marianas Variety,” the 68-year-old Lijie Cui, who has long resided in Hong Kong, was detained by ICE’s Customs and Border Protection and Deportation Task Force for alleged violations of U.S. immigration laws. Currently, she is being held at the Department of Corrections in Susupe.
Commissioner Anthony Torres of the Department of Corrections has confirmed Lijie Cui’s detention. As of the time of publication, ICE has not disclosed the details of the arrest, the specific nature of the alleged immigration violations, or the date of the immigration court hearing.
Lijie Cui is a major shareholder of the Hong Kong-based Imperial Pacific International LLC, which previously held the only casino license on Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. She and her son, Chinese citizen Ji Xiaobo, accumulated wealth in high-end gambling VIP rooms in Macao before transitioning to the gaming industry. Both were heavily involved in the development of the Imperial Pacific Palace in Saipan, as well as a $600 million waterfront hotel project.
Over the years, the casino project in Saipan has continuously attracted attention. A 2018 investigation by Bloomberg revealed allegations of illegal mass employment of Chinese citizens on tourist visas, security violations, and payment of millions of dollars in bribes to local officials and their families.
In 2020, three executives of Imperial Pacific International and MCC International Saipan, the company responsible for building the casino and hotel, were indicted on charges including illegal employment of foreign workers and transferring over $24 million to the U.S. for promoting illegal activities.
Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the casino was forced to close in March 2020. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on April 19, 2024, reporting debts exceeding $165.8 million.
Cleo Paskal, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, confirmed on the 13th on X platform: “Lijie Cui, a key figure in the billion-dollar Chinese casino on Saipan, has just been arrested by ICE… Yes, Chinese people can still enter Saipan visa-free.”
It is unclear whether Lijie Cui holds an E-2C visa, a temporary visa category for long-term investors in the Northern Mariana Islands. Whether Team King Investment, mainly supported by Chinese-born businessman Hiroshi Kaneko, can reactivate the closed property and resume casino operations is also unknown at this time.