Roulette Table: 'MUDDY GRAS' AT LIM CHU KANG
FOLK music drifts through the smoky night air.
Huddled around several gambling tables, groups of men flirt with Lady Luck.
In another corner, some men are with ladies of the night, and they are clearly up to a lot more than flirting.
Want a drink?
There's cheap alcohol.
Want a cheap smoke?
There are contraband cigarettes on sale.
All this happens in the middle of an open field in Lim Chu Kang.
The New Paper on Sunday staked out the spot for a week after a tip off.
It wasn't easy finding the illegal vice den, which is 30 metres from the main road.
To get there, one needs to drive on Neo Tiew Road before turning into a narrow dirt road.
The den is set up near a makeshift market located behind several blocks of hostels that house foreign construction workers.
The market opens at 7pm. Sellers display vegetables, fruits and fish on the ground.
A man who drives a pickup and his woman assistants appear to operate the market.
Foreign workers returning to their hostels usually stop there to buy their groceries.
With the market attracting customers, the sex and gambling followed, according to foreign workers we spoke to.
CAREFUL
But the workers weren't the only ones lured to the vice activity.
On the nights when we observed the den, there were Singapore-registered vehicles parked along a gravel road near the field.
This is what we saw on one particular night:
At 7.30pm, the operators of the vice den - consisting of six men and four women - arrived.
They were careful. First, they looked around for signs of the authorities.
Four men were deployed in different areas.
About 15 minutes later, all four men reported to one man at the centre of the field, before getting a thumbs-up to start work.
Once it was established that the coast was clear, some headed to the bushes where tables and chairs had been stashed, while the others started small fires to smoke out the mosquitoes.
Soon, foreign workers were lingering at the tables and chatting with the operators.
At the gambling tables, the 'banker' refused to start the game until more players joined in.
At 8.30pm, more gamblers trickled in, kicking off the night of illicit fun and entertainment.
At the gambling corner, up to five tables were set up for 'high-low' (a Thai dice game). It was the only game available.
'High-low' is played on top of a special plastic mat with markings similar to a roulette table.
The 'banker' would place the dice on a saucer covered with a small basket. Punters have to guess the outcome - whether it is high or low.
Using candles as their only source of light, seven bare-bodied punters placed bets of between $2 and $10 at one table.
As the 'banker' was about to lift the basket, the punters shouted 'xiao' and 'da' (small and big in Mandarin).
The winning group cheered the loudest.
Around 8pm, eight scantily-clad women arrived on motorcycles.
They were greeted by wolf whistles from the men waiting in the shadows.
They made their way to the edge of the field where bushes became bedrooms.
Plastic sheets were placed on the flattened vegetation. This is where the women would have sex with the men.
The eight women were providing sexual services to the men at about $20 a go.
There didn't seem to be enough women to go around.
Men squatted less than 5m from the bushes where the women were apparently having sex with their clients, drinking and joking with one another while awaiting their turn.
The queue was not orderly. At any time, 15 to 20 men would be waiting.
Some swatted mosquitoes, looking impatient.
Sometimes faint giggles could be heard from the women or the head of a customer would emerge from the bushes.
There was also a makeshift drinks stall - with cans of beer and soft drinks placed in a big styrofoam box filled with ice.
A can of beer cost $4. Contraband cigarettes from Malaysia also went for the same price per pack.
We spotted about 100 men visiting the vice den.
What makes the Lim Chu Kang vice den different from those highlighted in previous media reports is this is situated less than 10m from the workers' hostels.
Said a 26-year-old worker living in one of the hostels, who gave his name only as Raja: 'They used to gamble on pay day at the end of the month. But now you can see them gambling almost every day.
'It's not fair to the majority of us who only want to shop for vegetables. What if there's a police raid? We would probably be arrested for just being in the area.'
True enough, the cops, who had already got wind of the illegal activities, gatecrashed the party last Friday night.
The sight of a police patrol car in the area sent about 40 men in the field scurrying for cover.
Some fell while trying to escape, while others ran helter-skelter into the bushes. Some even left behind their bags and shoes.
In 30 seconds, the field was deserted.
The police said they have been monitoring the area.
Since March 2004, they have conducted several raids in the vicinity. As many as 70 people have been arrested for trespassing and immigration offences.
CIGARETTES SEIZED
But, during last Friday's surprise check, no arrests were made. The police confiscated a bag containing contraband cigarettes.
We overheard police officers questioning people in the area, but they denied any knowledge of the illegal activities.
When contacted, a spokesman for one of the hostels, who did not want to be identified, said: 'About half a year ago, some of our workers were caught by the police in a raid. One or two of our employees admitted to gambling.
'I had no choice but to send them back home to show the rest that we were serious.'
Huddled around several gambling tables, groups of men flirt with Lady Luck.
In another corner, some men are with ladies of the night, and they are clearly up to a lot more than flirting.
Want a drink?
There's cheap alcohol.
Want a cheap smoke?
There are contraband cigarettes on sale.
All this happens in the middle of an open field in Lim Chu Kang.
The New Paper on Sunday staked out the spot for a week after a tip off.
It wasn't easy finding the illegal vice den, which is 30 metres from the main road.
To get there, one needs to drive on Neo Tiew Road before turning into a narrow dirt road.
The den is set up near a makeshift market located behind several blocks of hostels that house foreign construction workers.
The market opens at 7pm. Sellers display vegetables, fruits and fish on the ground.
A man who drives a pickup and his woman assistants appear to operate the market.
Foreign workers returning to their hostels usually stop there to buy their groceries.
With the market attracting customers, the sex and gambling followed, according to foreign workers we spoke to.
CAREFUL
But the workers weren't the only ones lured to the vice activity.
On the nights when we observed the den, there were Singapore-registered vehicles parked along a gravel road near the field.
This is what we saw on one particular night:
At 7.30pm, the operators of the vice den - consisting of six men and four women - arrived.
They were careful. First, they looked around for signs of the authorities.
Four men were deployed in different areas.
About 15 minutes later, all four men reported to one man at the centre of the field, before getting a thumbs-up to start work.
Once it was established that the coast was clear, some headed to the bushes where tables and chairs had been stashed, while the others started small fires to smoke out the mosquitoes.
Soon, foreign workers were lingering at the tables and chatting with the operators.
At the gambling tables, the 'banker' refused to start the game until more players joined in.
At 8.30pm, more gamblers trickled in, kicking off the night of illicit fun and entertainment.
At the gambling corner, up to five tables were set up for 'high-low' (a Thai dice game). It was the only game available.
'High-low' is played on top of a special plastic mat with markings similar to a roulette table.
The 'banker' would place the dice on a saucer covered with a small basket. Punters have to guess the outcome - whether it is high or low.
Using candles as their only source of light, seven bare-bodied punters placed bets of between $2 and $10 at one table.
As the 'banker' was about to lift the basket, the punters shouted 'xiao' and 'da' (small and big in Mandarin).
The winning group cheered the loudest.
Around 8pm, eight scantily-clad women arrived on motorcycles.
They were greeted by wolf whistles from the men waiting in the shadows.
They made their way to the edge of the field where bushes became bedrooms.
Plastic sheets were placed on the flattened vegetation. This is where the women would have sex with the men.
The eight women were providing sexual services to the men at about $20 a go.
There didn't seem to be enough women to go around.
Men squatted less than 5m from the bushes where the women were apparently having sex with their clients, drinking and joking with one another while awaiting their turn.
The queue was not orderly. At any time, 15 to 20 men would be waiting.
Some swatted mosquitoes, looking impatient.
Sometimes faint giggles could be heard from the women or the head of a customer would emerge from the bushes.
There was also a makeshift drinks stall - with cans of beer and soft drinks placed in a big styrofoam box filled with ice.
A can of beer cost $4. Contraband cigarettes from Malaysia also went for the same price per pack.
We spotted about 100 men visiting the vice den.
What makes the Lim Chu Kang vice den different from those highlighted in previous media reports is this is situated less than 10m from the workers' hostels.
Said a 26-year-old worker living in one of the hostels, who gave his name only as Raja: 'They used to gamble on pay day at the end of the month. But now you can see them gambling almost every day.
'It's not fair to the majority of us who only want to shop for vegetables. What if there's a police raid? We would probably be arrested for just being in the area.'
True enough, the cops, who had already got wind of the illegal activities, gatecrashed the party last Friday night.
The sight of a police patrol car in the area sent about 40 men in the field scurrying for cover.
Some fell while trying to escape, while others ran helter-skelter into the bushes. Some even left behind their bags and shoes.
In 30 seconds, the field was deserted.
The police said they have been monitoring the area.
Since March 2004, they have conducted several raids in the vicinity. As many as 70 people have been arrested for trespassing and immigration offences.
CIGARETTES SEIZED
But, during last Friday's surprise check, no arrests were made. The police confiscated a bag containing contraband cigarettes.
We overheard police officers questioning people in the area, but they denied any knowledge of the illegal activities.
When contacted, a spokesman for one of the hostels, who did not want to be identified, said: 'About half a year ago, some of our workers were caught by the police in a raid. One or two of our employees admitted to gambling.
'I had no choice but to send them back home to show the rest that we were serious.'
