Luck runs out for 33 'Tai Sai' gamblers
BY CAVINA LIM
The gamblers, aged between 22 and 75 being led to court by police.
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GEORGE TOWN: Thirty-three people, including eight women, were each slapped with a RM2,000 fine in default four months’ jail for gambling at a workshop in Thean Teik Estate, Air Itam, here.
The gamblers, aged between 22 and 75, pleaded guilty to committing the offence at 12.45am on Jan 11.
They were charged under Section 6(1) of the Common Gaming House Act 1953, which carries a fine not exceeding RM5,000, or imprisonment not more than six months or both if convicted.
The group was nabbed during Ops Dadu with a glass bowl, glass plate, three dice, gambling chips, a calculator and RM67, which were submitted to court as evidence.
In mitigation before magistrate Umma Devi Loganathan, lawyer S. Puran, who appeared for all the accused including a Vietnamese woman, sought a reduced fine for his clients saying that their guilty plea had saved the court’s time and cost.
“They have also regretted their mistakes and offence committed," he said.
Deputy public prosecutor Edward Chan urged the court to mete out an appropriate sentence as a lesson to all the accused.
Earlier, several of the male accused flashed victory signs while smiling broadly at photographers as they were brought to the court. The female accused shielded their faces with hands while bowing their heads.
It was reported that the gamblers were so engrossed in playing the dice game of Tai Sai that they failed to realise that police were moving in on them. They paid the fine.
