THREE casino punters were given jail sentences yesterday.
For trying to evade the $100 entry fee at the Marina Bay Sands
casino, Loh Chet Ling, 25, will spend two weeks in jail. His
friend, Ong Kok Mun, 24, who allowed him to use his identity card,
received a similar sentence.
District Judge Jill Tan heard that the two hatched the
impersonation plan as Loh wanted to visit the casino for free.
At 7.15pm on Aug 19 last year, Ong paid the $100 casino entry
fee, which is valid for 24 hours, and provided his Singapore Civil
Defence Force identity card for the payment to be recorded
electronically. He then used his identity card to tap at the
turnstiles to enter the casino. A little after 9pm, he left. At
1am, Loh was caught by security personnel making use of his
friend's identity card to enter the casino.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Zhuo Wenzhao informed the court that
penalties for first-time offenders were usually fines of between
$2,000 an $4,000.
However, Judge Tan noted that in 2009, Loh had been convicted of
unlawful possession of someone else's identity card, while Ong had
been convicted of forging a vehicle's licence plate.
As these offences were "not dissimilar" to the current one, the
judge said a jail term would be more appropriate for the two
computer salesmen.
In another district court, Cheah Thiam Chai, 43, a Malaysian,
was jailed seven months for cheating a punter of $500 in chips, and
for entering the Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) casino while there was
an exclusion order in force.
District Judge Sarjit Singh heard that Cheah was caught stealing
casino chips at RWS last year. His punishment included a five-year
casino ban but he turned up again on May 6. The next day, he
cheated a punter at a baccarat table of $500 in chips by insisting
they were the winnings of a friend who had asked him to keep an eye
on the bet. Video footage revealed the lie but he had left by then.
He was nabbed in the casino the following day.
The maximum sentence for cheating is a $10,000 fine and a
10-year jail term. For ignoring the exclusion order, Cheah could
have been fined up to the same amount and jailed up to a year. Loh
and Ong could have been jailed up to five years and/or fined up to
$10,000.
(Taken from The Straits Times, Saturday, May 28 2011, Page
B14)