A HIGHLY organised Asian syndicate cheated the Gold Coast's Conrad Jupiters Casino out of almost $1 million in less than an hour at the high rollers' tables before being arrested trying to leave the Gold Coast Airport, a court has been told. The meticulously planned operation, which took place in May 2005, involved one man switching cards from hands dealt by the baccarat dealer with cards hidden in the palm of his hand in a bid to weaken his chances of winning.
Other members of the Chinese group sat at the same table and bet against whatever he had bet on.
In just 50 minutes they had netted more than $750,000, but were arrested that night at the airport after casino security staff monitoring video footage alerted police.
An alleged group member, Wei Shan Liu, 44, faced trial at Southport District Court yesterday. Four of the others have already been convicted over their roles in the scam, but Liu had her verdict overturned on appeal. A sixth man was cleared of all charges.
Back in court yesterday, Liu pleaded not guilty to one count of fraud, as crown prosecutor Judy Geary told how Songtao Zhao, 35, had used the hidden cards to make his hands weaker, giving the others betting against him a better chance of winning.
"He began to manipulate the result . . . and this defendant knew he had an extra card," Ms Geary said.
She said that over 27 hands, Liu, placing bets ranging from $7000 to $40,000, won 21 times, collecting about $400,000, while Zhao, betting in amounts ranging from $400 to $1500, lost 21 times.
She said the casino's security cameras had detected 14 instances where his left hand, which stayed facing palm-down virtually the whole time, had moved suspiciously over the hand he was dealt.
She also said the group had travelled together from Hong Kong, stayed at the same hotel, and were arrested playing cards at the Gold Coast Airport as they waited for their flight to leave.
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