A croupier working at the Sibaya Casino in South Africa was found to be allegedly rigging the roulette tables and conspiring with two casino players. In the scam they were able to steal around R500,000 (approx. US$36,000).
Last week, the now ex-croupier Genevieve Amichand and her two co-conspirators, brothers Roshan and Rakesh Harilall, appeared in the Verulam Magistrate's Court after they were arrested due to the alleged thefts in February and December 2016. The accused individuals were represented by attorney Chris Gounden.
Roshan Harilall, a diamond cardholder, typically spends around R5 million annually at the casino.
Meanwhile, his brother Rakesh, a gold cardholder, must spend around R3.5 to R4 million annually just to keep his status.
All three perpetrators were at first charged with R3.7 million fraud when they were arrested in 2017. However, it was not placed on the court roll that time. In June 2018, the theft and fraud charges were reinstated again.
Sunisha Harry, Rakesh Harilall's wife, was also arrested in June but was released after paying the R1000 bail.
The three were released on a warning but then were summoned to court. This time, the fraud amount was lowered to R487,000 from the original R3.7 million.
The State alleges the croupier Amichand had intentionally spun the wheel on the roulette table quite slowly, thus resulting in an error, but instead of claiming it as an error and must re-spin, she allegedly declared the error number as a win.
All four individuals are believed to have worked together. They have pleaded not guilty.
The case is still ongoing.
Source:
https://www.iol.co.za/thepost/high-rollers-up-for-casino-fraud-at-sibaya-18327706
