A scheme straight out of a Hollywood movie has landed 13 Thai nationals in Singapore prison.
Nine men and four women, aged 24 to 53, were found guilty of cheating Marina Bay Sands casino of $1.37 million, The Straits Times reported.The group were sentenced to jail sentences between 12.75 months and 17.25 months, according to the report.
Prosecutors said that in May 2013, the group worked together to steal a playing card carrier from a cabinet in the casino, taking it to a hotel room, where they laid out the cards and photographed them. Afterwards, the cards were packed back and the carrier was returned to the same cabinet.
The following day—when the carrier and cards were used in a baccarat game—six members of the group played and won over $1.37 million in three hours. The group lost some hands “so as not to show a pattern,” the news outlet reported.
The judge described the case “unparalleled both in terms of sophistication and sum cheated,” according to the report.
It certainly hasn’t been a good couple for Sheldon Adelson’s integrated resort in Singapore.
Just last week, Marina Bay Sands narrowly dodged becoming the target of a terror attack. Indonesian authorities arrested six people, allegedly part of the KGR@Katibah terrorist group, who they said planned to fire rockets at Marina Bay from Batam, an Indonesian island located across the Strait of Singapore.
Marina Bay offers a mix of residential, commercial and hotel and entertainment options, such as the Marina Bay Sands—making it a popular hub for international tourists. Authorities said there is no evidence that the casino was a specific target of the plot.
The integrated resort is also recovering from a dismal second quarter performance. In July, Marina Bay Sands reported a 10 percent year-on-year drop in mass table volume, and an 8 percent year-on-year decline in mass table GGR on a Singapore dollar basis—its first year-on-year decline in mass table GGR “on a constant currency basis” since 2012.
