Australia Chasing Thai Woman For Casino Debts

[george]

AUSTRALIAN INQUIRY: Thai woman wanted for casino debts

AUSTRALIA: -- Gambling tour organiser with political connections chased by operators seeking Bt300 million owed since 2001

Three Australian casinos are chasing a Thai tour operator whom they claim is responsible for millions of dollars in debts left by a group of Asian “high rollers”.

The casinos want to find a 58-year-old former Bangkok woman who, for many years, led gambling junkets to big resorts in Australia and the US.

The casinos, in Perth, Melbourne and on the Gold Coast, are reportedly owed at least 12 million Australian dollars (about Bt300 million at the time) from a tour led by the woman in February 2001.

Reports about the hunt for the woman appeared in major Sunday papers across Australia yesterday.

Operators of the Burswood Island Casino in Perth claim she owes them more than A$5 million, according to a writ filed in the Western Australian Supreme Court last year.

The writ alleges that a Hong Kong bank cheque for about A$3.8 million – to cover losses at the Perth casino by Thai or Asian gamblers for whom the woman was responsible – “bounced” when officials tried to cash it in March 2001.

Representatives of Crown Casino in Melbourne were quoted yesterday as confirming that the woman owed them at least A$4.5 million and, according to the reports, Jupiters Casino on the Gold Coast is owed a further A$2.5 million.

A source was quoted in the Sunday Times as saying that the woman regularly brought groups of between five and 20 gamblers to Australia.

“She brought a lot of money to [Australian] casinos through junkets,” the source was quoted as saying. “She was given a credit limit, then the gamblers would go off and lose or win.

“Then it was her job to collect the money. In this case, she claims she wasn’t paid by the gamblers.”

The Perth casino hired a private investigator to track the woman down. She was regarded as an industry “insider”, and had credit limits of up to A$4 million at most of the casinos.

The investigator was unable to locate the woman at previous addresses in Bangkok, but reportedly traced her to the Grand Diamond Casino at Poipet, near the Thai-Cambodia border, about a year ago.

“Inquiries suggest Burswood and two other casinos may have been the subject of a clever sting by someone regarded as an industry insider,” one report in Perth said.

“But it is believed that none of the three casinos has filed a criminal complaint with the [Australian] federal police.

“The federal police still regard this as a civil matter and have not been involved.”

The Sunday Times said: “Inquiries revealed that the gambling tour hostess had accounts with about 20 casinos around the world – including famous US establishments like Caesar’s Palace, the MGM Grand and the Las Vegas Hilton.”

But the hunt for the woman appeared to have “hit a brick wall, possibly because the woman has some heavyweight connections in Thailand and Cambodia”.

The woman’s daughter is thought to be married to a former Thai MP, whose family had strong links to a central province until the general election in January 2001.

“Burswood [casino] is understood to have been told there is no likelihood of a successful legal campaign in Cambodia or Thailand, given the influence of the woman’s connections and because gambling is illegal in Thailand,” the report said.

A Melbourne newspaper said Crown – owned by tycoon Kerry Packer, the country’s richest man – planned legal action to recover its money, but the casino’s management refused to discuss the matter. .

--The Nation 2005-08-22

[meelousee]

Rudyard Kipling warned long ago about the shy Asian with more credit than seemed to be good.

"The woman’s daughter is thought to be married to a former Thai MP,"I bet the daughter just farted and fainted

The silliest woman can manage a clever man; but it needs a very clever woman to manage a fool.

[george]

How do one obtain a credit line at a casino?? Thought it was a cash business....

[Rinrada]

The Perth casino hired a private investigator to track the woman down. She was regarded as an industry “insider”, and had credit limits of up to A$4 million at most of the casinos.

The investigator was unable to locate the woman at previous addresses in Bangkok, but reportedly traced her to the Grand Diamond Casino at Poipet, near the Thai-Cambodia border, about a year ago.

Recon she must have had a couple of Som Tam stalls on Suk Road.

Probabally back there now

[tuky]

I would love to know what this woman's name is.

[fxm88]

How do one obtain a credit line at a casino?? Thought it was a cash business....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

This is how it usually works in the US for your average Joe: you apply with the casino and give them you bank details. They do a credit check and if they think you're good for it they'll give you a line of credit. Then when you go to the casino you can ask for a "marker". They'll give you something to sign (that something could look like a check from your bank) and give you some money. If you win you're expected to pay off your marker before you leave. If you lose then they'll hold the "check" for a week or 2 to give you time to pay it off in cash. If they don't hear from you they'll deposit the "check" -- cause it's just like a real check -- and get the money from your bank.

However, that's for average Joe's with small lines of credit. If you were into them for 14 million, and it's really hard for me to understand them letting you borrow that much, I suspect they wouldn't let you leave the casino without first have a "conversation" and making some "arrangements".

[Rinrada]

Gambling tour organiser with political connections chased by operators seeking Bt300 million owed since 2001

The casinos want to find a 58-year-old former Bangkok woman who, for many years, led gambling junkets to big resorts in Australia and the US.

and...

I would love to know what this woman's name is

....well she is not from Pattaya so that must narrow down the possibilities a little bit.

[Sphere]

Would it help if I provided an artist's sketch of her hairdo?

Edited August 22, 2005 by Sphere

[Scott]

Considering that the Saudi Royal Family couldn't get their jewels back, what do you think the chances of Australia's casinos getting their money--or justice?