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)