Gambling Chips Worth Millions Stolen by Macau's Croupier
A casino worker at Wynn Macau stole approximately 50 million Hong Kong dollars (almost 6 million US dollars) worth of gambling chips from the casino. The prime suspect and others involved are now thought to be in custody.
In the first hours of last Tuesday, someone working as a dealer in the VIP section of Wynn Macau conducted a massive heist. The offender reportedly waited until the last guests had gone from the area before putting the day's takings from his table into a bag. He instructed a female coworker who was present to stay silent. Then, he left the premises undisturbed. The crime was caught on tape by the building's security cameras, but somehow went unnoticed at the time.
The police held a press conference on Wednesday and alerted the public to the theft. Guards deployed to protect casinos couldn't have stopped the theft as they also didn't notice it, and they typically only act at the casino's request. Nevertheless, they were looking for the perpetrator but didn't reveal the casino or any potential suspects at that point. Eventually, Wynn Macau acknowledged the incident. Images and information about the suspected thief started circulating on social media. The individuals who shared the information were detained for interfering in the ongoing investigation. The suspect was still on the loose.
However, the situation changed quickly. The investigators had information that the suspect named Lei planned to meet a relative. On Thursday night, they caught up to him alongside his uncle and arrested them both. The details of the press conference were released on Friday. The suspect had cash and some gambling chips on him. Not much was revealed about the motives behind the crime or the individual. The man had been working in the casino sector since 2009 and started dealing games as a croupier in 2011. He admitted to the theft and claimed gambling addiction and debt as his reasons. He has not disclosed the location of the stolen chips.
The chances of success were questionable
The chips have a theoretical value of over 6 million US dollars. However, their value is only applicable when exchanged at the Wynn Casino since each casino issues different chips. The thief himself would have had difficulty exchanging them there. The police mentioned that there is a market for stolen gambling chips. It was unknown whether the arrested man had already sold some of the booty or at what price. The investigators also didn't provide information about potential security measures for the chips.
For instance, an electronic identification number through a "chip within a chip" could be a solution. High-end casinos use RFIDs in their chips that can be read at the gaming tables and cashier areas. This makes it more challenging to forge the chips as both a missing RFID and a false number would be detected right away. If Wynn Casino adopted this technology, they'd have the opportunity to detect attempts to exchange the stolen goods.
It's not out of the ordinary for dealers to have access to such assets. Macau is referred to as "Monte Carlo of the Orient" and the gambling capital of the world. There are 38 casinos for every 650,000 inhabitants. High rollers and VIPs gambled at the perpetrator's workplace, often betting into the millions. What's surprising, though, is how easily the thief managed to leave with the loot without any issues. The gambling watchdog in the region, the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, urged the six casino operators in the area to enhance the monitoring of their premises.
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Source: www.onlinecasinosdeutschland.com
