Three Chinese nationals caught for using glue to steal chips at MBS Casino

SINGAPORE — Misusing the superglue in another way – Three crafty Chinese nationals applied strong glue to their palms, stealing chips from multiple patrons at Marina Bay Sands (MBS) Casino. For six consecutive days from 6 to 11 March, they managed to swipe S$1,575 worth of chips before getting caught in the act. The three men were identified as mastermind Huang Chunsheng (50 years old), and accomplices Zheng Jiansheng (64 years old) and Jiang Renjing (55 years old), who recently pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal in a Singaporean court. The court heard that the trio arrived in Singapore on 6 March on social visit passes for vacation and to gamble. While they will only be allowed to stay for 14 days, the trio did not buy their return tickets at that time. Before travelling to Singapore, Huang had already devised the "sticky hands" tactic as a contingency plan in case he lost while gambling at MBS. He came up with the idea of applying strong glue to his palms so that he could surreptitiously stick the chips to his hands as he passed them. Huang then shared the plan with Zheng and Jiang at the Guangzhou airport, and handed two bottles of strong glue to Zheng. Deputy Public Prosecutor Adelle Tai revealed that Huang did this to avoid detection, since Zheng had an eye condition that prevented him from seeing out of one eye and required daily eye drops to prevent infection. Huang told Zheng to say that the bottles were for his eyes if questioned at Singaporean customs.

Practising the skill

Once they arrived in Singapore, Huang instructed his accomplices on how to go about using their "sticky hands" to pick up casino chips. Jiang and Zheng practised with bottle caps and other small items until they perfected their craft. Initially, they agreed to split their loot equally, but they eventually decided that each man could keep whatever they pilfered. The trio frequented MBS on multiple occasions but separated upon arrival. They would then make their way to the restrooms to apply the glue on their hands once they had used up all their chips on the casino floor. Their primary targets were individuals who had placed large bets using a stack of chips, making it more difficult for them to realize if some chips were missing. Everything was going according to plan until Huang was caught red-handed on 11 March when a casino patron noticed that one of his chips had disappeared after Huang had placed his hand nearby. The victim immediately grabbed his hand and found the casino chip stuck to Huang’s palm. Huang was able to escape while the victim alerted the casino dealer. Huang later told his accomplices to cash in the chips he stole and suggested that they go to Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) since he could not return to the same casino. Although they did visit RWS the same day, they were soon apprehended. On Tuesday (2 May), the court imposed their prison sentences. Huang was sentenced to eight months, Jiang received seven months, and Zheng pleaded guilty to two additional charges of cheating while gambling under the Casino Control Act and was sentenced to ten months.