Man who devised scheme to cheat dates in rigged mahjong games gets jail

A co-conspirator acting as a reserve player would observe the victim’s style of play and relay the information to other players to reduce the chances of the victim winning.

The players were assigned tasks such as preventing the victim from winning, forming winning hands or throwing tiles needed by their accomplices.

According to Ang, this scheme allowed the conspirators to win 99 per cent of the time.

Ang set up a WhatsApp chat group called “Sales appointment updates” to disseminate information among the accomplices.

He also conducted training sessions to teach the rest how to play in each designated position.

Winnings were pooled and handed to Ang, who would then distribute “commissions” to the co-conspirators.

The co-conspirators each earned a commission of between S$300 and S$500 for each mahjong session.

There were at least 28 victims in 28 games in 2024.

Ang was assigned to be a player in 18 games, of which 12 eventually took place and in which he participated.

One victim was told he had to pay S$26,000 after losing a game on Jun 1, 2024, but refused.

Another victim was also pressured to pay S$26,000 after losing a game. Ang threatened to visit this victim’s workplace and report him to the police for allegedly raping an accomplice.

The victim later filed a police report.

Ang was arrested in June 2024 and released on bail, but reoffended and was remanded. 

He was later offered bail but reoffended a second time and was remanded again.

The prosecution sought 25 to 27 months’ jail with a fine of S$15,000 for Ang.

Ang’s lawyer, Mr John Koh from Avalon Law, sought 19 to 21 months’ jail with a fine of S$15,000.

Ang’s accomplice, host and player Olivia Chin Hui Zhen, was sentenced to eight months’ jail and fined S$3,000 last month. She was the first member of the group to plead guilty.

The cases involving the remaining accomplices are pending.

For each charge of conspiring to cheat, Ang could have been jailed for up to 10 years and fined.

For unlawful gambling, he could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$10,000, or both.

For organising unlawful gambling, an offender can be jailed for up to seven years and fined up to S$500,000.