Tough laws deter cheats

GAMBLING knows no boundaries.

Thanks to the lure of big money, it has become an "international venture", senior deputy secretary for home affairs Khoo Boon Hui has said.

Singapore's gaming revenue was $6.5 billion last year and looks set to grow to $8.2 billion this year.

And Macau's more than 30 casinos are expected to rake in US$35 billion this year.

"Given the large volume of money involved in this business, we can expect that organised crime groups will attempt to infiltrate legal gaming operations directly or indirectly through illegal junket operations, cheating scams, loansharking, vice, coercion, intimidation, extortion or corruption," Mr Khoo told regulators and government officials at the second Singapore Symposium on Casino Regulation and Crime on Wednesday.

Like the punters who cross countries in search of Lady Luck, crime syndicates too vary in "size, scale, geographical scope, internal structure and how they avoid prosecution from law-enforcement agencies", he added.

But experts are tuned into the scams.

Mr Jerry Markling, Nevada Gaming Control Board's chief of enforcement, told The New Paper that syndicates gain a foothold in casinos only when they are able to "defeat the internal controls or gain employees' cooperation".

For every case of casino cheating that comes to light, others slip under the radar. And it's difficult to gauge the level of undetected crime.

Said Dr Derek da Cunha: "I have asked professionals in the business what number they would put on cheating cases that go undetected for every case that is detected, and so far, none have been able to give a concrete answer."

He is the author of Singapore Places Its Bets, a book on the socio-economic impact of the casinos opening in Singapore.

Though the numbers are unknown, "that does not mean (casino cheating) does not happen; that merely means that the criminals are professional or sophisticated in their methods at cheating", Dr da Cunha added.

Do syndicates find it tougher to strike at Singapore's two new casinos, given the penalties?

For instance, anyone found guilty of knowingly using fake chips faces up to seven years in jail, a fine of up to $150,000 or both.

Said Mr Markling: "It's hard to say. When a property is new, everyone is more alert and aware of the cheating threat. (Casino) employees are also much more likely to adhere strictly to the internal controls.

Opportunity

"On the other hand, new casinos tend to be very busy. The confusion created by heightened activity may provide a greater opportunity for organised cheating groups to operate."

But Singapore's strict laws and punishment, plus strict regulation from the Casino Regulatory Authority and police are strong deterrents, he added.

"The most important thing to prevent syndicates from taking hold is to have very strong preventive law-enforcement strategies in place from the very beginning," said Mr Jonathan Galaviz, managing director and chief economist of a consultancy firm that specialises in tourism, casinos and government strategies.

That knowledge will give freelance writer Mr Yap some comfort. The man who gave only his surname, visits the casino five times a week and is fed up with the cheats.

They tend to strike at the sic bo (big/small) or roulette tables, claiming they placed a bet after the result is shown.

Perhaps such conmen think a genuine punter would be careless enough to forget his bet.

Said Mr Yap: "I've seen it happen several times and it's happened to me too.

"I don't think they do it accidentally. How can you forget your bet? It's your money."

tnp@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The New Paper.