The Whale that beached

Part I

Tan Kim Teck stood on the deck of the Blue Lagoon and took in the magnificent sight before him. Blue skies, brilliant sunshine, shimmering waters – the stuff of postcards. But all his colleagues had disappeared into the merry-making crowd after attending their company seminar on board the cruise ship. What should he do now?

He decided to return to the air-conditioned comfort of the ship. Once inside, he bumped into a group of middle-aged men and women who seemed to be in a hurry. Then it dawned on him that they were heading for the ship’s restaurant for a quick bite before returning to the Blue Lagoon’s prime attraction – the casino.

The only casino he had ever been to was Genting. Curious to see how this one compared, he walked in. It was much smaller but the trappings of luxury were there – brightly-lit chandeliers and heavily carpeted floors. It was a lazy afternoon, the crowd was sparse and he was bored. “Should he have a go?” “Why not?” He answered his own question.

Over the next two hours, he placed bets ranging from $100 to $500 a hand at the Blackjack table. And Lady Luck was beaming on him. He was winning more than he was losing. He felt a thrill of delight. A quick mental calculation showed that he was up $1,200; a 120% gain over his initial capital.

Tan Kim Teck’s mantra was “quit while you are ahead”. So after losing his next hand, he decided to redeem his chips. As he was waiting for the money, a soft voice called out behind him, “Excuse me, sir”. He turned round and was greeted by the sweet smile of a young lady wearing a green blazer. “I see you have done very well today, sir. You’re a good player.” He laughed, “Lucky, only lucky.” The lady’s smile grew sweeter. “A good player with exceptional luck. A rare breed indeed. Sir, do you know we have a VIP room specially for people of your calibre. Maybe I can show you the room?” Should he accept the offer? Then for the second time that afternoon, he answered his own question, “Why not?”

The Kwan Im Tong Hood Cho Temple in Singapore was famous for answering the prayers of believers. Tan Kim Teck was one of them. He prayed at the temple at least once a week, and on the morning of 7 December 1992, he was there again, head bowed and whispering a fervent prayer. He had a lot to be grateful for. Life had been good since that company-sponsored cruise three years ago. From monthly cruises, he had gone on to weekly ones, revelling in the ups and downs of gaming in these floating casinos. As a VIP guest, he enjoyed free cruises and was allowed a personal betting limit. Which was just as well because his stakes had risen from the casino common floor limit of $2,000 per box to $10,000 per box. But most importantly, he had been winning consistently. So much so that by the end of 1990, his bank balance had topped $210,000.

Then, there was that particularly satisfying cruise experience in April 1991, after which his bank balance swelled to $505,000. Tan Kim Teck always thought he would quit once his bank balance hit $500,000. “Quit while you are ahead” was his mantra and he had always taken pride in feeling that unlike others, he knew what he was doing and was always in control of the situation. But that night, as he lay in bed, he thought, “Now that I’ve $500,000, what next? Quit now or ride my luck for a little longer?” He had this feeling that he was good for another $300,000. He thought of the security that the extra money could buy for his family. He thought of his devil of a Managing Director. If he could add a bit more to that $500,000, he would not have to put up with that tyrant anymore. He could simply walk out. “Sack the boss,” as they put it. Tan Kim Teck licked his lips at the prospect. Yes, he would raise the bar to $800,000. Hit $800,000, and he would quit his job and his gambling.

Hitting the $800,000 mark proved no problem at all. More problematic was keeping to his promise to quit. Now that he had reached the mark, should he just walk away from it all or should he hang on for one last hurrah? “Quit or go for more?” It was as simple – and as difficult – as that. But once he thought of his obnoxious boss, it got very easy. He would quit alright – his job, that is. He would tell his boss to shaft the job down the toilet before slamming the door behind him. He was still smirking when the gentle voice of his female companion roused him from his reverie.

“Sir, what song would you like to sing?”
“The Hokkien number, Ai Piah Jia A Yiah.”
“What kind of song is that?”
“It’s a song about beating the odds. You’ve got to go for it and risk it all if you want to win.”

From now on, he would “piah” to “yiah” and once he had amassed a big enough fortune, he would exit in a blaze of glory.

21 July 1993 was a special day for Tan Kim Teck. He had chosen that day to retire as a high roller in style. That morning, he called the junket operator, Seng, to book his “lucky” ship. Having won three times in a row on this ship, it was only fitting that he should see out his career here.

As the ship reached international waters, he vowed, “Definitely my last fling!” His bank balance had exceeded the million dollar mark. He had resigned from his company. After this last cruise, he would take a six-month break before looking for a less stressful job. Yes, this was what he had wanted all along – retire at 40 and live a life of luxury and leisure.

But it was not to be. 21 July 1993 – the day that would mark his triumphant exit from the gambling world ended in clinical shock for Tan Kim Teck. From 10 pm to 6 am, in just 8 hours, he lost a whopping $750,000 – three-quarters of what he had won over the last four years. It was a disaster beyond his wildest imagination. Glassy-eyed and shell-shocked, he staggered off the ship like a punch-drunk boxer. What should he do now? He had no job and no retirement insurance. Then he remembered how he was always confident and in control of things. He would win yet again. As he reached his car, he swore he would win back everything that he had lost. He took out his handphone and called Ah Yong.

The Whale that beached

Part II

Against the advice of Ah Yong and other junket operators, he returned to the ship that very night.  They had told him to take a good rest before coming back but he would not listen.  His adrenaline pumping.  He could not wait. It went well at first – before things started to turn sour again.  By the next morning, he had lost an additional $250,000.

Bad luck continued to dog him over the next few months.  By his own reckoning, he lost just about every trip he made to the casinos.  He had exhausted all his funds and used up all the credits available in his credit cards.  His debts were mounting. The junket operators lost their patience and threatened him over the phone.  He spent the day scanning the jobs vacant column for every position there was.  But the replies, if they came at all, were always the same – no.  He stopped driving because he did not have enough money to buy petrol.   

Still he put up a brave front and did not breathe a word to his family.  But the façade could not last.  When his money ran out, he had to tell his wife even though he lied about the extent of his losses.  She took the news without a murmur of complaint, only advising him not to repeat his mistake.  Then she withdrew all her savings, and when that was not enough, gave him her jewellery. 

But when even that was not enough, he had to seek help from his parents who forgave him and gave him all their savings.  Next, shame-faced, he went to see his in-laws.  They too were forgiving and gave him their life savings. Still it was not enough.  But he no longer had the courage to tell them and so whenever they asked him how things were, he would reply that things were fine and he would get a job soon.  No one knew the depth of his depression nor the fact that he recorded a goodbye tape one late night when things got really bad.  With tears streaming down his cheeks, he said, “When you see this recording, my love, I will no longer be around…”

When Tan Kim Teck read the letter, his eyes lit up.  At last, a positive reply from the hundreds of applications sent.  He had been accepted by a big corporation as its finance manager.  He could see the flickering light at the end of the tunnel. With money from the job, he could make a comeback to the casinos and recover the losses that had made his life a living hell. 
                               
On his fifth day with the company, he was abruptly summoned to a meeting with his junket creditors. Impatiently, they warned:

“Don’t play games with me, Mr Tan.  You gambled so freely with my money and now you tell me you cannot pay.  You told me two months ago that you needed time to pay and I gave you a chance.  Your two months’ up and still there is no money.  I’m a businessman and I’m reasonable.  But I cannot wait forever.  Do you want me to come to your home or your company?”

“But I really can’t raise the money.  Please…give me a bit more time.”

“How much more time?  Look, you are a se boon lang (well-bred person) but I’m a pai kia (bad hat).  I tried to be se boon (polite) with you but if you force me, then I may not be so nice anymore.”

“One more month.  I promise I’ll raise the money by then.”

“One more month, huh…are you sure this time?”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Ok…don’t say I’m not reasonable.  One more month and that’s it.  If you don’t pay up by then…”

There was a stack of documents in the tray for his action but Tan Kim Teck was in no mood to look at them.  He was a desperate man.  Although he had gained another month’s reprieve and felt the noose loosen slightly, he knew it was only a temporary relief.  How could he raise $200,000 in a month?  And what about the $300,000 he owed the other two operators?  They would be coming for him too. 

He stared down sadly.  Then something caught his eye.  It was a message chit his secretary had left on his desk.  Some bank officers had wanted him to return his call.  As he looked at the chit, an idea brewed.  Maybe there was a way out after all.  He had borrowed from banks but the amounts were relatively small because the loans were made in his name.  What if they were borrowed in his company’s name?  For sure, the amounts would be much larger – large enough to solve his financial woes.

The Whale that beached

Part III

First, he approached an European bank. Using forged papers, he opened an account in his company’s name with himself as the sole signatory and got credit facilities for $500,000, which he used. Over the months, he used similar modus operandi on three other foreign banks, creating more fictitious documents and obtaining credit and loan facilities.

He was in sole control of all these accounts by using forged documents that authorized him to receive the credit and loan facilities, sign all transactions and operate the bank accounts on behalf of his company.

Tan Kim Teck used the money to pay his debts. But he knew he was still in trouble. How would he repay the astronomical amounts he now owed the banks? He cast his eye in the direction of the familiar casinos. But once again luck was not on his side as he watched with growing horror his financial meltdown from five disastrous outings.

By February 1995, Tan Kim Teck knew that in order to recoup his enormous losses, he had to play for higher stakes. Gambling on cruises would not suffice. The only way was to go to the world’s biggest casinos where the biggest bets are. So he left for Melbourne which offered him the highest stakes -- almost three times above the $100,000 a hand limit on cruise ships. Soon, his “overseas trips”, usually over the weekends, grew more frequent. He flew for free on the casino’s private jet and was pampered by the comforts of its presidential suite. But his luck did not change. It was loss after loss after loss. By the middle of 1998, Tan Kim Teck had lost a mind-boggling $30 million. On many occasions while flying back, he would close his eyes and prayed fervently for the plane to crash into the ocean below and put an end to all his sufferings.

But on Christmas Eve of 1997, in the middle of his deepening crisis, he had a surprise visitor from London. He turned out to be an aristocratic-looking gentleman who had flown all the way to Singapore to persuade him to gamble at his London casino. Tan Kim Teck was flattered. His reputation had certainly travelled. The gentleman explained that his casino was one of the most exclusive in the world, and catered only to a select clientele, princes, socialites and celebrities. He was as eager for him to join this circle of whales (big-time gamblers) as he was to grab at this lifeline – a maximum table limit of almost $1 million and a clean credit line of $10 million!

In March 1998, Tan Kim Teck made his first foray into London. Although he did not win on his maiden trip, his subsequent trips in June and August 1998 were lucrative ones. The latter in particular netted him $12 million, the single biggest win of his career. On the weekend of his return to Singapore, just before August, he was for the first time in years, calm and relaxed. His spirit was buoyed by the big win and he felt sure that this was the start of better things. But sadly for him, it turned out to be the calm before the storm. The Commercial Affairs Department got wind of his shenanigans and came knocking at his door. When he was arrested on 12 August 1998, the 46-year-old father of two teenage boys had swindled banks of a record $117 million and blown $62 million of it in casinos around the world. At that time, he was reputed to be the second-biggest casino gambler in the world. He was jailed for 42 years, the longest jail term meted out for a commercial crime in Singapore history.

In his career as a high roller, Tan Kim Teck had savoured the full spectrum of worldly living – from the enviable lifestyle of the rich and famous to the euphoric heights of a red-hot winning streak. But was it worth the while? Tan Kim Teck provided the answer with a question of his own, “What would I have achieved if by winning the world, I had to lose my loved ones?”

quote originally posted by steelsteed:

You should know my style!

No chun2, Nap2, will not post - cause I do not want to bring our Horseking Racing Members to Holland and up the lorry!

 

The Morale of the Story;

You can win sometimes, but you cannot win all the time!

quote originally posted by steelsteed:

OK?????

 

quote originally posted by steelsteed:

Thanks brother, I didnt type.

I copy it from the Singapore Prison Service - to share.

 

quote originally posted by kenchua_2001:

Thank you brother kenchua.

Morale of the Story, "You can't win the house"

 

quote originally posted by 准 !!! 准 !!!:

Very True Statement!!!

Gamble will lead no-where.....