The Macao Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) has apprehended two suspects allegedly involved in an election rigging case, local media reported on Sunday.

Macao Daily News, the leading Chinese newspaper in the special administrative region, quoted CCAC sources as saying that the two men were caught red-handed while paying cash to a voter at a local restaurant late Friday.

The two, one gambler and the other serving at a local hotel, reportedly pledged to pay 500 patacas (US$62.5) for each vote.

The pair has been transferred to the Prosecution and is expected to face a maximum jail term of five years, according to the newspaper.

The special administrative region, with a population of nearly 470,000, will hold direct and indirect legislative elections on Sept. 25.

(Xinhua News Agency September 5, 2005)