{"id":272902,"date":"2023-05-10T18:21:34","date_gmt":"2023-05-10T23:21:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=272902"},"modified":"2023-05-11T13:59:50","modified_gmt":"2023-05-11T18:59:50","slug":"aspinallschinese-firewater-led-to-600k-loss-gambler-claims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/aspinallschinese-firewater-led-to-600k-loss-gambler-claims\/","title":{"rendered":"Aspinall\u2019s 54% \u2018Chinese Firewater\u2019 Led to \u00a3600K Loss, Gambler Claims"},"content":{"rendered":"

A gambler sued by London\u2019s exclusive Aspinall\u2019s Casino<\/a> for a \u00a3600K (US$750k) baccarat debt is taking a stand. Lester Hui<\/a> claims he was plied with 54% proof\u00a0 \u201cChinese firewater\u201d by one of the casino\u2019s senior executives, leaving him \u201ctoo drunk to gamble.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Aspinall\u2019s,
Lester Hui, above, leaving a London courtroom. He claims an Aspinall executive got him blind drunk and should have prevented him from gambling. (Image: Champion News<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Aspinall’s is a famous private members\u2019 casino in London\u2019s swanky Mayfair district. Its business model once involved relieving England\u2019s dissolute aristocracy of their inheritances. But today, it focuses on wealthy businessmen from China and the Middle East.<\/p>\n

\n

It launched legal proceedings against Hui in March, who swung by the venue one night in February 2016 and gambled big on double chance baccarat, according to the lawsuit. The London-based nightclub owner and restaurateur lost just under \u00a3600K. He presented the casino with a blank check, which bounced.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Hui claims that before the session, Aspinall\u2019s VP of International Marketing, Chris Lima, ordered a bottle of Maotai, a powerful distilled Chinese liquor, and suggested they play the drinking game \u201cliar\u2019s dice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Drinking Game<\/h2>\n

Hui says he lost the game and had to drink a shot. This was on top of around\u00a0three and a half bottles of wine or champagne he claimed he had already consumed during a gambling session earlier that evening. Hui subsequently downed at least four more shots and as many as 10, according to court documents.<\/p>\n

This left him in a condition he described as \u201ctotally gone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris [De Lima] ordered a bottle of Maotai and we started playing a game of truth or lie. He would roll the dice and if you got below a certain number, you\u2019d have to drink a shot of Maotai,\u201d<\/strong> Hui claimed.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cI have a memory of the beginning of the evening, but after the games and drinking the Maotai, I was totally out,\u201d he told the judge, as reported by The Daily Mail.<\/p>\n

Hui says the casino took advantage of his drunken state and should have prevented him from any further gambling.<\/p>\n

High Tolerance?<\/h2>\n

De Lima called the claim \u201cridiculous,\u201d arguing the businessman was sober enough to make decisions and even drove himself home in his Bentley, surviving the 45-minute trip.<\/span><\/p>\n

Aspinall\u2019s, owned by Australia\u2019s Crown Resorts, has produced surveillance video it claims shows that Hui was not blind drunk during his visit.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAs a judge, I\u2019m thinking that\u2019s a lot of alcohol and I would be in hospital, or certainly lying down somewhere. Tell me, how do you manage with such a large amount of alcohol, how do you cope?’ quizzed the judge.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get used to it,\u201d Hui replied. \u201cI drink every day, and when I\u2019m opening up my nightclub, I\u2019m always drinking with the customers.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A gambler sued by London\u2019s exclusive Aspinall\u2019s Casino for a \u00a3600K (US$750k) baccarat debt is taking a stand. Lester Hui claims he was plied with 54% proof\u00a0 \u201cChinese firewater\u201d by one of the casino\u2019s senior executives, leaving him \u201ctoo drunk to gamble.\u201d Aspinall’s is a famous private members\u2019 casino in London\u2019s swanky Mayfair district. Its […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":272903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[60,84511],"tags":[85449,86245,82143],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAspinall\u2019s\u2018Chinese Firewater\u2019 Led to \u00a3600K Loss, Gambler Claims<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Aspinall\u2019s Casino is suing wealthy businessman Lester Hui for \u00a3600k baccarat debt. 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