China tourist allegedly cheated by countryman at MBS Casino
Mr Deng, a 35-year-old tourist from China, was approached by a fellow countryman when he was at Marina Bay Sands Casino on May 29.
The latter, who introduced himself as Wan Longqiang, approached Mr Deng and told him he had lost his money gambling. Mr Wan then asked to change money with Mr Deng.
"I thought we were from the same home country, so I agreed to help him," Mr Deng told Shin Min Daily News.
The two men met at 2pm the following day to exchange money.
Mr Wan told Mr Deng that it would be more convenient if he could simply transfer his yuan to him via WeChat to someone in China, so the latter gave his mother's WeChat account.
"He transferred 27,500 yuan ($5,130) to my mother's WeChat account and I gave him the Singapore dollars," explained Mr Deng.
At 5pm on the same day, Mr Wan contacted Mr Deng and asked to exchange an additional $10,000.
The transaction in one of the toilets at the casino was no different from the one earlier – except that Mr Deng's mother did not receive any money when he checked in with her after Mr Wan had left.
Mr Deng found Mr Wan on another floor of the casino. "It is illegal for you to exchange money. It's useless to call the police," Mr Wan said to Mr Deng before taking off.
The police confirmed they had received a report and are currently investigating.
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