cheat caught red-handed at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
Attempts to cheat at casino games are multiplying all over the world. In Singapore, police arrested a 45-year-old Malaysian member of a crime syndicate. He apparently used an electronic device to record the cards dealt during a baccarat game at the legendary Marina Bay Sands casino. The cheat could be sentenced to seven years in prison and fined €100,000.
Man arrested for baccarat cheating at Marina Bay Sands
On June 08, a 45-year-old Malaysian man was arrested in his home country by the Royal Malaysian Police and handed over to the Singaporean authorities the same day. The individual’s arrest is linked to an investigation which began on December 24, 2022 and was conducted by the Casino Crime Investigation Branch, a unit attached to Singapore’s Criminal Investigation Department.
As part of this investigation, the individual charged and a 27-year-old Taiwanese man were indicted. During a search, police seized casino chips worth over $520,000, cell phones and cash. Both individuals were found to have cheated at 7 Up Baccarat, a variant of baccarat offered at Marina Bay Sands.
Tried in court on June 09, 2023, the older of the two men was charged with cheating – not a trivial offence in Malaysia and Singapore – as well as participation in a conspiracy to defraud a gaming establishment, under section 171 (1 and 5) of the 2006 Act dubbed the “Gaming Act”. Casino Control Actand Article 109 of the Penal Code of 1871. The Malaysian is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years and a fine not exceeding €103,500.
An electronic device to record the cards drawn by the croupier
While the Singapore police stated that they “ would continue to take tough action against those involved in casino crime, whatever their role, and would ensure that they were subject to the law with the strictest rigor”. “Little information has been divulged about the cheating methods used by the Malaysian and his Taiwanese accomplice.
All that is known to date is that the defendant who cheated at the baccarat tables used an electronic device that enabled him to memorize the cards dealt by the croupier during previous games. By this means, the swindler was undoubtedly able to anticipate the next cards, in a totally illegal manner.
