Expats

Three expats caught in gambling den by police

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-12-16 11:16

Three foreigners were arrested on Sunday in Wangjing for gambling, the Beijing public security bureau said Tuesday.

Altogether five workers at the illegal casino and nine gamblers were arrested. A dozen gambling machines and bets of more than 5,000 yuan were confiscated, the police said in a press release.

A man surnamed Kim, 40, and another man surnamed Lim, 35, who held foreign passports, were among the workers.

Another foreigner surnamed Sin, 20, a student at a Beijing university whose name was not disclosed, was also caught gambling.

All three lived in Wangjing, Chaoyang district, the police said. They would be detained for five days according to Chinese regulations.

The police said they received a tip off at the beginning of the month that an amusement arcade in Wangjing was operating as a casino. After investigation, they discovered that the location was deserted in daytime but came alive with people at night.

They raided the casino center on Sunday at midnight and found a dozen crowded games machines. They were being used for gambling.

A worker surnamed Liu with the center told police that the business had been open for a couple of months but attracted few customers. They decided to install gambling machines.

Sin said he had heard of the place from other foreign students, and had lost several hundred yuan on Sunday. He told police he knew gambling in China is illegal and regretted taking part.

The Beijing No 1 Intermediate Court said last month that 58 percent of crimes committed by foreigners in Beijing were from students. Almost 20 cases of foreign students have been handled at the court.

The crimes committed by foreign students rose 50 percent in 2008 year-on-year and another third already this year, Guo Jingxia, a press officer of the court said Tuesday.

She said most of the criminals or suspects are very young, usually in their 20s, and the crimes or offenses are very light.

Most foreign students do not know much about Chinese laws and regulations, she said. They forget that while some offences are normally punished with fines in their home countries or regions, they might be treated more severely under Chinese law.

METRO