Playing poker games using contact lenses that can read invisible ink on the back of cards is a more common practice than most people think. Unfortunately, more and more cheaters are using this method to slip money in the unwary turn pulled in the middle of a private game, managing to get away with it in most cases.
Ink invisible to the naked eye
On the other hand, it is not easy to identify this kind of scam, first of all because the cheater could be only one and all the other players present at the table could be the victims. Secondly, since there are no visible alterations to the cards or irregularities in the shuffling of the deck, it is necessary to check that there are no traces of invisible ink through special lamps. In higher private games, players certainly equip themselves with these tools, but in smaller ones it is almost impossible to unmask the scam.
Chinese boarding
The latest episode took place in China, where four men robbed an opponent thanks to the special contact lenses one of them wore. Before the game they had marked the cards with invisible ink, then handed the deck to the victim to check that it was correct. The man – a pesticide entrepreneur – found no malformations and agreed to play.
The facts
During the game the victim lost 10,000 Yuan, about 1,350 euros, unaware of having no chance of winning: the player with contact lenses identified all the cards in play and signaled to his teammates what to do through signals and gestures. Nonetheless, the businessman must have realized that the game was not fair, so after leaving the hotel with empty pockets he headed to the nearest police station to expose his suspicions.
In addition to injury, there is also insult
An unintelligent move, as gambling is strictly prohibited in China. The man did not receive the money back but was instead arrested along with the other four players. After analyzing the decks and identifying the scam, the cheaters were also accused of scam. There will almost certainly be a lengthy prison sentence for them.