Can Singapore's reputation handle cheating gamblers?

As Singapore attempts to take a slice of the pie that is Asia's emerging gaming industry, its courts have been busy doling out disciplinary action on cheating gamblers. So far, none have been locals.

At the Resort World Sentosa casino, a 33-year-old South African, Sibongile Arthur Mgxashe, was sentenced to seven months jail time for cheating at the roulette tables, according to Channels News Asia. 

On more than one occasion, Mgxashe placed his bets on the table after the winning result had been declared, a scam known as "past-posting", earning a total S$14,000 in cash chips. The Resort World Sentosa casino is the first casino opened in Singapore by the Malaysian gaming group Genting.

Since the casino’s opening in February, similar incidents have occurred. In April, a group of three visitors (two French nationals and a Spanish national) allegedly nearly cheated the casino out of US$10,000 via the same method on the roulette tables. 

And a Chinese national was caught and jailed for 10 months trying to place a S$600 past-post bet on a dice game called Tai Sai, which would have earned him S$6,000 at the casino.

The past-posting offense seems to be popular with most cheating gamblers. Though Singapore is known for its strict crime laws, gamblers have been testing the waters to see how much they can get away with. Watch this space.