Jeju casino faces three-month suspension over marked cards case
Six people were referred to prosecutors over alleged blackjack fraud against Chinese tourists.
South Korea.- Jeju’s provincial government could suspend a casino for three months over an alleged card-marking fraud against Chinese tourists. The province sent the casino a notice of the proposed administrative penalty at the end of September and received the casino’s written opinion last week. A decision has not yet been made, but one official reportedly said the penalty will be issued soon unless motives for a reduced sanction are recognised.
Jeju police referred six people to prosecutors on fraud charges on September 11: the casino’s representative and five employees, including dealers. Police also referred the casino’s operating company, citing its failure to exercise due care and supervision under the dual liability provision.
The suspects are alleged to have run blackjack games for three Chinese tourists using marked cards in June. Police put the criminal proceeds at more than KRW100m (US$64,600). The case came to light when Jeju’s casino operations management system showed higher-than-usual profit at a blackjack table. Provincial inspectors obtained cards suspected of being marked and CCTV footage showing signs of game manipulation.
