In a ruling by the Supreme Court in Brisbane, Singaporean high roller Yew Choy Wong has been ordered to pay over AU$38m (US$25.3m) to Star Entertainment Queensland for a gambling debt.
The ruling, made by Justice Melanie Hindman, includes an order for Dr. Wong to cover The Star’s legal costs and interest, which has been accumulating since September 2018.
The debt stems from a five-day gambling spree in 2018 at the Star Gold Coast casino, where Dr. Wong lost AU$47.3m. After racking up these losses, Dr. Wong left the country without settling his account, which Justice Melanie Hindman stated is “not unusual” for high rollers.
The casino attempted to recover the debt using a cheque Dr. Wong had provided during a previous visit to Star Casino in Sydney, but the cheque bounced after he instructed his bank to halt payments.
In October 2018, Star demanded $43.2m from Dr. Wong, but he contested the debt, claiming a verbal agreement had been made after he objected to the way his baccarat cards were dealt.
Dr. Wong alleged that Star’s COO, Paul Arbuckle, agreed to waive his losses up until 30 July 2018. However, Mr. Arbuckle denied such an agreement existed.
Justice Hindman ruled there was no evidence to support Dr. Wong’s claim of an agreement to waive his debt. A letter sent by the casino acknowledging a lapse in following Dr. Wong’s gaming preferences did not mention any such agreement. As a result, the court ruled in favour of Star Entertainment.
Dr. Wong’s debt, including interest calculated at $8,819 per day for 2,174 days, amounts to over $38m.
