Man gets jail for taking bets on Hong Kong horse races at Jurong West housing block

SINGAPORE: An illegal bookmaker set up a betting operation at a Housing and Development Board (HDB) block in Jurong West, collecting bets from punters on horse races in Hong Kong.Ng Sea Beng, a 69-year-old Singaporean, was nabbed by the police in possession of over S$4,000 (US$3,100) in cash, a pen and a betting slip.Ng was jailed for four weeks on Tuesday (Jul 21) after pleading guilty to one count under the Gambling Control Act for conducting a betting operation.The court heard that Ng devised a plan to conduct the illegal operation in May 2026.He intended to collect bets from people near Block 967B, Jurong West Street 93, as he knew some people who frequented the area and would be interested in placing bets.He also knew that there were tables and chairs there which would make it conducive to host a gathering.As Ng had acted as an illegal bookie in the past, he had past contacts who would be interested in placing bets with him.On May 6 this year, Ng went to the block and took with him a pen, a betting slip and cash of S$2,500 for operating capital.He then began looking for people to place bets with him on horse races conducted in Hong Kong.Singapore held its last horse race in October 2024.Ng collected bets from at least three people for at least five horse races over two hours, collecting cash earnings of S$1,550.Police officers on duty arrived at the location at about 8pm and apprehended Ng, along with three other people who were watching horse races with Ng.They seized the cash and other items Ng had on him.The prosecutor sought between four and eight weeks' jail for Ng, noting that the offence was not syndicated and not difficult to detect since it was in a public place.Ng, who was unrepresented, told the court via a Hokkien interpreter that he was old and had "leg issues".He added that he could not walk steadily and falls down easily.The judge told him that this offence carries a mandatory jail term. However, he noted that the operation was "relatively unsophisticated" and a relatively small amount of bets and capital were involved.For conducting a betting operation, Ng could have been jailed for up to five years, fined up to S$200,000, or both.