SINGAPORE – A tourist who lost around $30,000 after gambling at the Marina Bay Sands (MBS) casino decided to fake his own kidnapping, and tried to dupe his aunt into transferring 30,000 yuan (S$5,700) to him.

In text messages to the woman, who was then in China, Chinese national Liu Changjian, 33, demanded a “ransom” but she did not transfer the cash. Instead, she told Liu’s father about the purported kidnapping.

The older man, who was also in China at the time, alerted the Singapore police and Liu was arrested on March 10, 2024, after they found him safe and sound in the Marina Bay area. On May 6, he pleaded guilty to one count of attempted cheating and was sentenced to 10 weeks’ jail.

Liu arrived in Singapore on March 1, 2024, and lost about $30,000 after he gambled at the casino almost every day.

On March 7, he pretended to be a man called “Brother Tiger” and contacted his aunt on his spare WeChat account, asking her to transfer 30,000 yuan by noon the next day.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Tan Shi Yun said: “In order to dishonestly induce the victim to transfer (the monies) to him, the accused sent the victim a picture of his passport.”

When the woman did not respond, he sent her another message on March 8, stating that if Brother Tiger did not receive the cash, Liu would be locked up for two months.

Upon seeing the messages, she told his father who alerted the police soon after.