Aug 17, 2010
Man fined for chips theft
<!-- by line --> By Elena Chong
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<!-- end left side bar --> <!-- story content : start --> AN UNEMPLOYED man was fined $3,000 on Tuesday for theft of $5,000 worth of cash chips from Resorts World Sentosa. Ooi Boon Huat, 57, who is the first man to have claimed trial to a casino-related crime, was convicted by District Judge Sarjit Singh after a two-day trial of stealing 10 pieces of chips with a value of $500 each at the Sentosa Gateway premises on March 10. The court heard that Ooi had gone to the casino to play baccarat and won his bet of $10,000.
When he bet a further $5,000, he lost. He then took the chips away from the table and tried to cash them. Ooi has previous convictions for manslaughter, using abusive language, gaming and unlicensed moneylending. A pre-trial conference has been fixed on Sept 1 for three more unrelated charges against him. He could have been jailed for up to three years and/or fined for theft.