Asian Invasion

Busses of Asians bring boat loads of trouble in PA.

For as long as one can remember, gambling has often been intertwined with Las Vegas, flashy/high class shows, and…..Asians?

Yes..it is true. No culture embraces gambling more than Asians. Though Las Vegas is the proclaimed Mecca of the gambling world, the shores of Macau has become the new gambling hop spot, offering hot action and behemoth casinos.

The Las Vegas Sands, which has hedged its future on its brand new Macau palace, has also ventured into the Pennsylvania gambling arena, with the opening of the PA Sands at the site of the old Bethlehem Steel. With its proximity to the city (1.5 hours to NYC and Philly), partaking in the gambling fun is merely a car or bus trip away.

Now, the majority of casino goers that have ventured over to the PA Sands, are there to take in the sights and sounds. However, according to information obtained from a third party source employed at the casino, theft and thievery has become a reoccurring problem, especially within the Asian community.

Thinking back a few months, there was a story that made the front page of the local newspapers, where a supposedly friendly Asian woman was helping elderly casino goers withdraw funds from the various ATM’s scattered around the casino floor. Now I am not exactly sure how money ended up being stolen, however, it was reported that this “helpful” lady would steal the pin numbers of those she was supposedly helping, making off with significant sums of money. She was eventually caught when her elderly victims realized funds were missing from their accounts and the PA Sands security team used video surveillance to trace the thievery to this individual.

Problem solved, right? Not exactly.

Recently, casino thievery has reverted back to the old pick-pocket style, and according to the source, has become a very common theme. This makes sense when you look and see that the Sands has three security guards at ever entrance to apply wristbands to younger casino goers, while having poor floor presence where the actual gaming is taking place.

The new tactic:

According to my casino source, what he and others have been seeing quite frequently is that the bus loads of Asians have not only been brining gamblers to the casino, but also thieves. The tactic being employed? Overcrowding at table games, which creates uncomfortably close situations/contact and allows for an experienced pick-pocketer to loot while all the while being undetected.

According to the source, this has happened on multiple occasions, with the thieves appearing to be male, as the emptied wallets are found stuffed in the paper towel dispensers in the men’s bathroom. No arrests have been reported to date for these instances.

Therefore, I say, next time you venture to the PA Sands, bring keep your wallet closely guarded, because if the casino doesn’t steal all your money, you can bet that these thieves will.