A Malaysian man has entered a guilty plea to being a member of a group that used a "secret formula" and covert recording devices to defraud the Marina Bay Sands of S$433,730 (US$315k) at baccarat.

The gang's third convicted member is 46-year-old Chai Hee Keong. The Straits Times reports that he was given a 22-month prison sentence on Monday.

Codenamed "the Sorcerer," a female syndicate member who played 7Up baccarat while seated in the casino, was vital to the gang's strategy. According to court records obtained by the Times, the Sorcerer was wearing a covert earpiece connected to her smartphone.

Prosecutors claim that the Sorceror would provide information about cards to "the Marksman," who would then reference an Excel spreadsheet to instruct her on how to wager.

There was a "formula" in the spreadsheet that supposedly helped players beat the house edge. Nothing in the court records has disclosed the nature of the formula.

"The Tank" was the codename for Chai. As stated by Tay Zhi Jie, Deputy Public Prosecutor, "his job was to follow instructions relayed through the Sorcerer and place bets accordingly," as quoted by The Straits Times.

Can a Player in Baccarat Count Cards?

It's hard to tell exactly what's going on based on the Times account, but it seems like Chai could have been picking up on hints from the Sorcerer or other team members.

Prosecutors claim that "The Tank" typically placed large bets, strongly implying that he was the person with the advantage.

In 30 hours of baccarat play between December 16 and December 22, 2022, Chai won $118,500 for the syndicate. In his absence, others filled in as "Tank." 

Baccarat is generally not a game where card counting is an issue. But only the Marina Bay Sands offers 7Up baccarat, therefore it's probable that the gang devised a special method exclusive to this casino.

Card counters could potentially take advantage of 7Up baccarat, according to certain gambling technique specialists. Though this is highly theoretical, it's also feasible that a gifted mathematician could be able to identify minute biases in the Sands' automated card shufflers. 

Regarding the Lam 

Eventually, the eye in the sky saw the gang's actions. On December 24, 2022, Hung Jung-Hao, a national of Taiwan, one of its members, was taken into custody at the casino.

When word spread of his arrest, his associates left $790K worth of casino chips in their Sands hotel rooms. After being held in Malaysia, all of them were sent back to Singapore. 

Tan Kian Yi, one of the group members who was given a 40-month sentence in November of last year, admitted to police that he was recruited by Wang Yu and Hung Yu-Wen (the Sorceror), a couple he met in the Philippines and who are now awaiting trial.

According to court records, the duo informed Tan they had a baccarat beating technique created by an enigmatic person only known as "Kelvin."