Posted on: October 4, 2023, 09:38h.
Last updated on: October 4, 2023, 09:38h.
A Malaysian man pleaded guilty in a Singapore courtroom on Tuesday to being a key player in a cheating syndicate that scammed the Marina Bay Sands out of S$433,730 (US$315k). The scam involved using hidden mobile devices to communicate card values and a secret strategy to beat baccarat.
Tan Kian Yi, 35, was part of a team that operated at the Sands casino in December 2022, utilizing mobile phones to transmit images of playing card values to partners, as reported by The Straits Times.
The Sorcerer’s Accomplice
According to court documents mentioned in The Times, a female member of the syndicate, known as “the Sorcerer,” would play 7 Up baccarat while wearing a concealed earphone connected to her mobile device. She would relay card information to Tan and other “marksmen,” who would then advise her on betting strategies based on an Excel spreadsheet.
The spreadsheet contained a formula that seemingly provided an advantage in the game, although details of the system were not disclosed in court documents.
Two other gang members, Hung Jung-Hao, 27, from Taiwan, and Chai Hee Keong, 46, from Malaysia, have also been implicated in the case. Three additional individuals, Wang Yu, 22, Hung Yu-Wen, 24, and Chou Yu-Lun, 26, were accused of being part of the syndicate, but it remains unclear whether they have been officially charged.
Hung was arrested on December 24, 2022, after the gang’s suspicious activities were captured by security cameras during their previous visit. Upon learning of Hung’s arrest, the other gang members fled to Malaysia but were later apprehended and extradited back to Singapore. In their haste to escape, they left behind $790K worth of casino chips in their hotel rooms at the Sands.
Secret Formula
Tan informed authorities that he met Wang and Hung, who are a couple, at a casino in the Philippines in August 2022. Hung later claimed to have a system that could help them win at baccarat. Tan stated that he knew very little about the system, except that it was created by someone named “Kelvin.”
Tan’s lawyers argued that there was no evidence suggesting the system involved fraud or cheating. Therefore, it was “impossible to determine whether the effect of the formula would have been to change the odds of the game beyond what the casino had anticipated,” as stated by his defense.
Under Singapore’s Casino Control Act, the use of electronic devices for card counting or recording while gambling in a casino can result in a maximum prison sentence of seven years, a fine of up to S$150,000, or both.