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PROD

Born in 1947, Alan Ho's résumé certainly doesn't read like that of your typical Macau pimp.
Those who know him describe him as a knowledgeable businessman and wine connoisseur fluent in English and French.
Nor is his story one of a poor child born and raised in a struggling family, forced to turn to crime. Ho, as his surname indicates, hails from a prestigious Macau family that presides over a sprawling business empire headed by his uncle - gaming kingpin Stanley Ho Hung-sun.
"He is a gentleman, a very kind and sophisticated man," said Eric Sautede, vice-president of Macau's Alliance Francaise, an international organisation which promotes French culture and language of which Ho is a former president.
Married without children, Ho holds a degree in business administration. From 1979 to 1985 he taught at the Chinese University of Hong Kong before pursuing a PhD in law at Harvard University.
That was followed by a brief stint at a law firm. Then in 1991, he joined his uncle's empire, the Sociedade de Turismo e Diversoes de Macau, or STDM.
At the time of his arrest in January, he was the manager of Hotel Lisboa - the alleged crime scene. He was also a senior executive at Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, the STDM subsidiary that operates casinos.
Ho served as Alliance Francaise president for about a decade up to 2002. He personally and financially supported the body, and Paris officially recognised his work for the French community by awarding him the Ordre des Palmes Académiques in 2007.
Ho was a "deep connoisseur of French cuisine and wine", according to Sautede. Ho was responsible for bringing French chef Joel Robuchon's Michelin-starred restaurant to Macau and building at the Grand Lisboa the most extensive and complete wine collection in Asia.
Ho also contributed to the development of local tourism through his positions as president of the Association of Macau Tourist Agents and vice-chairman of the Macau Hoteliers and Innkeepers Association. He was also managing director of Macau's New Yaohan shopping centre.
In 2011, the government of Macau's Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai-on granted him a Medal of Merit for his tourism work.
Business partners and acquaintances variously describe him as an "astute businessman", "shrewd", "intelligent" and "knowledgeable".


Stanley Ho's 'sophisticated' nephew Alan cuts an unlikely figure as a Macau pimping suspect

Alan Reginald John Ho, pictured at the Hotel Lisboa in Macau in 1995. Photo: SCMP Pictures

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