Sticky fingers: Trio jailed for applying strong glue on their palms to steal casino chips from MBS patrons

SINGAPORE - Three men who applied strong glue to their hands to steal chips from casino patrons were on Tuesday handed prison sentences.

Chinese nationals Huang Chunsheng, 50, Jiang Renjing, 55, and Zheng Jiansheng, 64, had each pleaded guilty to a theft charge.

Jiang was sentenced to seven months’ jail, while Huang was ordered to spend eight months behind bars.

Zheng, who had also pleaded guilty to two offences under the Casino Control Act, was sentenced to 10 months’ jail.

The court heard that the three applied strong glue to their palms, before passing their hands over casino chips belonging to multiple patrons. They managed to steal $1,575 in casino chips in total before they were caught.

Before travelling to Singapore, Huang decided he needed a plan to steal chips, in the event that he should suffer losses while gambling here.

His idea was to apply strong glue to the palm of his hands.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Adelle Tai said Huang knew that by doing this, he would be able to pick up casino chips and conceal them from unsuspecting patrons.

Huang shared the plan with his two accomplices while they were in China, and handed two bottles of a strong glue to Zheng.

DPP Tai told the court that Huang did this to avoid detection.

“Huang had knowledge of Zheng’s medical condition, which required him to apply eyedrops every day, failing which he would develop an eye infection,” said DPP Tai.

Huang told Zheng that if quizzed about the bottles when entering Singapore, Zheng was to say they were for his eyes.

The three men arrived in Singapore on March 6 and stayed at a hotel in Geylang.

The next day, Huang showed his two accomplices how to use their sticky hands to pick up casino chips. Jiang and Zheng then practised with bottle caps and other items.

The trio originally planned to divide the spoils equally but later decided that each man would keep whatever they stole.

Between March 6 and 11, they visited the Marina Bay Sands Casino on multiple occasions but split up once they got there.

After using up all of their own chips, they retreated to the washrooms and applied glue to their hands before returning to the casino floor.

“The trio mostly targeted patrons who had placed large bets using a whole stack of chips, so that it would be harder for the victims to notice if some chips went missing,” said DPP Tai.

On March 11, Huang was caught red-handed when a casino patron found one of his chips missing after the thief had placed his hand nearby. The victim immediately grabbed his hand and found the casino chip stuck to Huang’s palm.

The victim alerted a casino dealer but Huang fled the premises.

After his escape, Huang told his two accomplices that he could not return to the same casino and suggested heading to Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) instead.

But first, he wanted Jiang to encash the casino chips he managed to steal from patrons at Marina Bay Sands. He needed money to gamble at RWS.

The three men later visited the casino at RWS on March 11. They were arrested soon after.

They have not made any restitution.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.