Using a W for wild card to indicate a deuce, assume you are dealt W W Q♦ J♦ T♦ on a Triple Play version of Deuces Wild. This is not a tough play. You hold all five cards for a wild royal flush. (Other terms for the same hand are royal flush with deuce and dirty royal.) Usually this pays 100 or 125 coins, depending on the pay schedule, and in the specific version you’re playing it returns 100 coins.
Continue reading When is a Wild Royal Flush not a Wild Royal Flush?Station goes off its meds; Hochul names casino pickers
Richard Schuetz writes today that “the reality of casino company board rooms is that they are overwhelmed with way too much testosterone.” That certainly seems to be the case at Station Casinos, which has announced seven projects to be executed over the next seven years. Overreach much? A company that took 39 years to reach its present size intends to double it in less than eight. Company President Scott Kreeger told the Las Vegas Review-Journal, “There’s no one more bullish on Las Vegas than Station Casinos.” That much is obvious. And the economic auguries are positive, with credit card delinquencies in the Las Vegas Valley running very low, among other favorable economic indicators. The area population is 24% larger than it was before the Great Recession and gross gaming revenue is 15% higher than before the pandemic (but 8% lower than in 2007).
Continue reading Station goes off its meds; Hochul names casino pickersAccording to Snyder . . .
The Radical Blackjack Story . . .
I had made my living for more than 25 years from blackjack, primarily by writing about it, but also by playing the game to formulate and test theories, while making money in the process. But I haven’t written a book about blackjack since The Big Book of Blackjack, which was published in 2006.
A good portion of Radical Blackjack was written ten years ago and it was even offered for sale on Amazon in 2013. But I decided to hold off on publishing it, partly because I felt some of the material was too sensitive, and partly because I needed to do a lot of analyses on the rebate material and I didn’t have access to the software I needed to do it.
Radical Blackjack contains a lot of my personal gambling secrets, plus secrets I learned from other pro gamblers. The version of this book that was almost published in 2013 was a much different book from this 2021 version. In fact, the prior unpublished manuscript was a lot less radical. In that version, I used pseudonyms for most of the characters—many of whom are well-known pro players, authors, and experts in the Blackjack Hall of Fame. I was also very careful in that 2013 version of this book not to reveal too much about the actual plays and strategies, many of which had never been published, or at least, not in any great detail. I did write in detail about my own discoveries and experiences, especially with regards to shuffle tracking, loss rebate plays, and online gambling, But I left a lot of details out on plays I was involved in, but had mostly learned from other pros.
But my Huntington Press publisher and longtime friend, Anthony Curtis, encouraged me to go ahead and use the real names of the characters in the stories I told because it would make the book better. He said we could just run everything by those whose names were revealed to make sure we weren’t stepping on anybody’s toes. So, I started changing pseudonyms to real names, and once I started doing that, I figured what the hell, since we’re going to run the whole thing by these guys anyway, I might as well tell a whole lot more of the story, since they would be offered the right to veto anything about them or their strategies they didn’t want in print.
It didn’t surprise me that some players wanted to remain anonymous, requesting pseudonyms. But many said, fine, use my name. What really surprised me was that the players who were vetting this book requested very few cuts regarding the details of the tactics and strategies that we used, many of which have never been exposed in print. So, Radical Blackjack should prove to be one hell of a revelation for many serious students of the game.
Rather than attempt to describe the contents of Radical Blackjack, I’ll just post a version of the Table of Contents here. I put this together by listing the chapter titles, headings and subheadings. Information on purchasing the book follows.
1 Shuffle Tracking
Does Shuffle Tracking Work in Today’s Casinos?
What Is Shuffle Tracking?
Shuffle-Hopping at the Calgary Stampede
One Good Slug
Hammering the Lakeside Inn
Playing for the Camera at the Atlantis in Reno
Outrageous Favors at John Ascuaga’s Nugget
Winning Big and Getting the Boot at Palace Station
Tracking with the Dealer’s Help at the Tropicana in Atlantic City
Dodging the Cutoff Plugs at Paris
Going South
Short-Shoed at a Sawdust Joint
2 Radical Camouflage
Beating High-Tech Surveillance
The Griffin Snitches
Hot Game Reports
Ambush Warning for the Greeks
Cellini: The Ultimate Double Agent
Back to Beating Blackjack Survey Voice
The Insurance Flaw in the Survey Voice Software
The Double-Down Flaw in the Survey Voice Software
Keep Track of Your Camo Costs
Will These Techniques Work Today?
3 Playing with a Partner
Pillaging Aladdin’s London Club
Enter the Rainbow People
Playing Multiple Simultaneous Hands
Using a Partner to Explain Your Nutty Logic
Radical Misplay Camouflage
Let’s Change the Order of the Cards
4 Milking Loss Rebates
The Legend of Don Johnson
The $140,000 Shoe
The Insane Super Bowl Comp
The Comp to Beat All Comps
How to Win by Losing
Rebate Theory (Oversimplified)
Overall Value of Loss Rebates to a Winning Player
The Camouflage Value of Loss Rebates
The Best Rebate Strategy to Maximize Dollar Wins
The Time Factor
The Terrible’s Loss Rebate for Low-Rollers
The Aladdin Rebate Deal
The MGM Grand’s Loss Rebate
The Real World Chart
The Paris Casino’s Two-Tier Loss Rebate
Like Tarzan Swinging from Vine to Vine
Bet-Sizing and Bankroll Requirements for Loss-Rebate Games
Getting a Rebate on a Win at Stratosphere
Loss Rebates at Other Games for Low(er) Rollers
5 Playing on Other People’s Money
Max Sends Me to Play the Tribal Casinos in California
“Mr. F” Backs Me to Attack the Big Rebate Games
The Blackjack Forum Dream Team
Avery Cardoza Backs Me in WSOP Tournaments
6 Hole-Card Play
Illegal Hole Card Strategies
Obsolete Hole-Card Strategies Worth Knowing About
Spooking
Tell Play
Einbinder and Dalben
Steve Forte’s Last Big Play
Playing Warps
Steering Strategies
Legal and Still Viable Hole-card Strategies
Can Hole Carding Be Learned?
“The Turn”—a Legal Hole-Card and Steering Strategy
A Bit of History
Tips on the Turn
Is the Turn Legal at Blackjack?
The Easiest Hole-Card Play of All
7 Beating the Online Casinos
A Better Kind of Loss Rebate Play
8 Off-the-Wall Outtakes, Tangents, and Gossip
How Jesse Morgan Became James Grosjean
Everyone Knows Munchkin
How Henry Tamburin Saved Tommy Hyland’s Teammates from Prison
Why Revere Tricked His Students into Returning for More Lessons
Whatever Happened to Keith Taft’s Computer Shoes?
Jack Newton’s Story About a Big-Money Roulette Play
Wheelin’ and Dealin’ with Ken Uston
The Night Al Francesco Showed Up at My Apartment
Stanford Wong’s Secret Advantage Play on Lodging in Vegas
An Unauthorized Review by Peter Griffin
Bill Benter’s Book Gets Trashed on Amazon
My Dinner with Julian Braun
The Mysterious Ian Andersen
Bob Loeb and the FBI
Just 33.95
Report from the shore; Cretins win in Alabama
While Bally’s Corp. may not be the laughingstock of the casino industry, it isn’t for want of trying. You would think that Bally’s Atlantic City (above) would want to pimp nearby Bally’s Dover Downs to its customers. Instead it sent a lengthy mailer touting all the great deals to be found … at Bally’s Vicksburg. We mean, if you’ve driven to Atlantic City regularly, what’s a quick little runout to Vicksburg, the vacation capital of Dixie? (Not.) Don’t get us wrong. We’ve been to Vicksburg. We like Vicksburg. But it’s not exactly the destination that Bally’s customer base is slavering to be incentivized towards. Actually, Bally’s apparently needs to induce players to stay in Atlantic City anyway. Through the end of the month it’s offering room rates starting at $19 a night, though one wag suggested that was $15 too much (and yes, he’s stayed there).
Continue reading Report from the shore; Cretins win in AlabamaBook Reviews
Review of Munchkin’s Gambling Wizards
by Arnold Snyder
Review of Josh Axelrad’s Repeat Until Rich
by Arnold Snyder
Review of the Blackjack Shuffle Tracker’s Cookbook
by Arnold Snyder
Review of Ian Andersen’s Burning the Tables in Las Vegas
by Arnold Snyder
Review of Wong’s Casino Tournament Strategy
by Arnold Snyder
Review of Mezrich’s Bringing Down the House
by Arnold Snyder
Review of Wong’s Betting Cheap Claimers
by Joel H. Friedman
Review of Cellini’s Card Counters Guide to Casino Surveillance
by Arnold Snyder
Review of Patterson’s Break the Dealer
by Arnold Snyder
Review of McDowell’s Blackjack Ace Prediction
by Arnold Snyder
Review of Dubey’s No Need to Count
by Arnold Snyder
Miscellaneous Weird Shit
Think You’re an Expert? (Brain Teasers)
by Arnold Snyder
Las Vegas: Carnival of Carnivals!
by Arnold Snyder
A Blackjack Strategy Puzzle
by Arnold Snyder
Beyond Coupons
by James Grosjean
Common Casino Jargon
by the Vindicator
Professional Compulsive Gamblers I
by Arnold Snyder
Professional Compulsive Gamblers II
by Arnold Snyder
The Blackjack Ball
by Mark Truman
Too Many Weeks in Vegas
by Rebecca Richfiekd
How to Count Cards
Intro to Winning Blackjack
by Arnold Snyder
Is Card Counting Legal?
by Arnold Snyder
Complete Basic Strategy
by Arnold Snyder
Simplified Basic Strategy for Card Counters
by Hal Marcus
How Card Counting Works
by Arnold Snyder
Why We Split Aces and Eights
by Arnold Snyder
Losing Your Insurance Bet?
by Arnold Snyder
Should You Surrender?
by Arnold Snyder
Tips on Counting Technique
by Kyle Sever
The Cost of Errors
by Arnold Snyder
Comparing the Simplest Systems
by Arnold Snyder
What’s the Best Card Counting System?
by Arnold Snyder
The Hi-Lo Lite
by Arnold Snyder
Back Betting at Blackjack
by Arnold Snyder
Carlos Zilzer’s OPP Count
The Easy OPP Count: A New Approach to Card Counting
by Carlos Zilzer
The Easy OPP Count: Why It Works
by Kim Lee
Attempting a Fair Comparison with OPP
by ETFan
The Advanced OPP Card Counting System
by Carlos Zilzer
Card Counting for the Vision-Impaired
The “Senior’s System”
by Arnold Snyder
Variations on the Senior System
by Arnold Snyder
More Advanced Systems
Count per Deck with the Zen Count
by Arnold Snyder
Are Side Counts Worth the Trouble?
by Arnold Snyder
The Victor APC
by Rich Victor
The Victor Insurance Parameter
by Rich Victor
Those Damn Fluctuations
A First Year in the Blackjack Pits
by G.K. Schroeder
Blackjack Luck
by Howard Grossman
The Low-stakes Professional Card Counter
by Arnold Snyder
Las Vegas Blackjack Diary (excerpt)
by Stuart Perry
Waiting for the Long Run
by Arnold Snyder
Winners and Losers
by Tobaksa, Tommy Hyland, Taylor James, Dan Paymar, Pro21, Dustin D. Marks, One More Shoe, Bob Loeb, Abbot Avarissa, Bill Haywood, Anthony Curtis, JC, Cizef, Max Rubin, James Grosjean, John Brahms, Moe Cash
Risk of Ruin for Basic Strategy Players
by Brother William
A Counter’s Story
by One More Shoe
Lady Luck: Ain’t She a Bitch?
by Arnold Snyder
Psychology of Professional Gambling
by Orange County KO
You Won’t Win
by Arnold Snyder
The Blackjack Team Dream
The Blackjack Team Dream
by Arnold Snyder
(From Blackjack Forum Volume XVI #1, Spring 1996)
© 1996 Blackjack Forum
A blackjack team may be the only legitimate business venture where you would seek partners who are honest, trustworthy con artists. But then, that’s what all successful card counters are, and that’s why most card counters work alone.
Through the years, we’ve published a lot of information about the concept of team play at blackjack, from Marvin L. Master’s proposal for a more equitable method of disbursing profits to investors and team players (Blackjack Forum, June ’83), to the hilarious adventures of Keith Taft’s original computer blackjack teams (Blackjack Forum, Dec ’85), to our coverage of Stanford Wong’s blackjack tournament team (Blackjack Forum, Mar ’87).
My Sermon in the March ’89 issue suggested, tongue-in-cheek, that I would soon be starting my own blackjack team bank, by collecting $1,000 each from 100 different Blackjack Forum subscribers to fund my own play. Although that Sermon was a joke, written as a warning to players to be wary of dishonest blackjack team scams, I reported in the following issue my surprise at the number of Blackjack Forum readers who contacted me with serious offers to fund my play!
Our reportage on the Hyland blackjack team trial in Windsor in the last issue of Blackjack Forum has similarly resulted in dozens of letters from readers who want to contact Tommy Hyland so they can talk with him about joining one of his teams. Sorry, gang… Tommy’s got a waiting list a mile long. And the only way to get on the list is to be personally recommended by one of his current team members. Tommy only trusts con artists who are trusted by other con artists he already trusts… or something like that.
This abiding interest in blackjack team play does not surprise me, however. Anyone who starts to grasp the frightening mathematics of normal fluctuation at blackjack realizes that any solo player taking on a casino is truly an ant versus an anteater.
Ants fare better in armies. To place your hard-earned $20,000 bank against any major casino’s net worth of hundreds of millions of dollars is an extremely risky proposition. Many of us can only fantasize about what it must be like to enter a casino with a seven-digit bankroll so that the results of even table limit bets are fairly inconsequential. And to be able to do this with a team of skilled blackjack players who can play more hands in a day than you alone could play in a week — this is the ultimate dream for many card counters.
A relative few — the Al Francescos, Ken Ustons, Tommy Hylands, Johnny Cs and MIT groups and various other known and unknown entrepreneurs — have managed to pull off the blackjack team venture with varying degrees of success. But there are so many factors involved in setting up and following through on a successful team operation that for most players, the concept simply remains an unfulfilled fantasy.
Factors Involved in Running a Successful Blackjack Team
First, where do you find serious investors to fund such an off-the-wall scheme?
Second, where do you find players who are (1) talented card counters, (2) trustworthy, (3) free to play and travel, possibly without compensation for many months, and (4) good enough actors to pull the whole thing off on a grand scale, under the continuous scrutiny of high-tech surveillance equipment?
Then there are the two major blackjack team problems I’ve heard over and over through the years, which could be loosely categorized as either “cheat” problems or “heat” problems.
The cheat problems may be real or imagined, but they are usually devastating to any blackjack team’s survival or potential success. It matters little whether a player or group of players is actually ripping off the team bank, or merely suspected of ripping off the team bank; the result is the same. The remaining players get out fast to minimize the damage, and investors pull out their capital (if they can get it!). Accusations fly, once friendly relationships are ruined, and the blackjack team is dead.
The heat problems arise externally, rather than internally, but the effect can permanently mar playing careers. Once a big money team has been identified by casino game protection specialists, every player suspected of an association with that team can suddenly find himself listed in the Griffin book of undesirables, his mug shot in the midst of common cheats, criminals, con artists and thieves.
This guilt by association can plague a player for years. Some of the worst horror stories I’ve heard have come from players who first learned they were “in the book” while playing blackjack in a foreign country. To suddenly be detained by foreign police who threaten to arrest you if you don’t give back all the money you’ve “stolen” from the casino can be a terrifying experience.
When confronted with your listing in the Griffin book, portraying you as an “associate of known card cheats,” how do you explain to these authorities that this book — which is distributed worldwide among many major casinos — is mistaken, and that you have never cheated any casino, let alone their casino? Like most players caught in such a predicament, you will give them back their money, and often more money than you’ve won (if you’ve won!), just to get out fast without the hassle and expense of a trial, and, most likely, jail time while you await trial.
Other serious problems which have plagued many teams in the past are problems which never should occur assuming proper measures are initially taken in forming and guiding the team. These would include under-capitalization, team members who are incompetent, or who have problems with alcohol or drugs, or who have already been identified as card counters in casinos where the team plays, or who are undependable, or even compulsive gamblers.
In this issue of Blackjack Forum, we’re going to focus on blackjack team play, and especially on those details which most often spell either success or failure. Despite the fact that many of the most successful players through the years have been involved in teams of one sort or another, my warnings to players about the dangers of team play still stand. The teams that succeed are exceptional.
In fact, there are so many pitfalls on the road to success that only the most dedicated, hard working, perceptive, well-financed, and extraordinarily talented teams make money. To most players, my advice would be: Don’t risk it! Dreams are enjoyable, but some dreams turn into nightmares. You wouldn’t be the first card counter to wake up from the team dream in a cold sweat, searching for comfort in your empty pockets. Blackjack team dreams are dreams for the brave at heart, not your run-of-the-mill honest con artists, only those who sleep with both eyes open. ♠
Blackjack in Nepal
Playing Blackjack in Nepal
by BJ Traveller (with Mark Dace)
(From Blackjack Forum XXIII #4, Winter 2003)
© Blackjack Forum 2003
I love and hate Nepal as I was JAILED there 76 days but was rescued by the Nepal casino and many nice Nepalese. Nepal is a good place for blackjack, but beware ….
Major Casinos in Nepal
The major Casinos in Nepal are Yak & Yeti, Everest, Crowne Soltee, and Annapuma. Two new ones have been planned. All casinos are owned by an American. He has been running casinos for over 30 years in Nepal.
Blackjack Rules in Nepal
The blackjack games I find in Nepal were all 4 decks, S17, DAS, split to 3 hands, ENHC (dealer takes split and double with BJ). Penetration varies from 90% (for morons) to 50% (for bet spreaders), up to three “back bets” are allowed. The tables have seven boxes. The limits are 100 Indian rupees (about $2.20) and $3US (play at the same table) to $100 (Annapuma) and $300 (Yak & Yeti and Everest). Some casinos place a table max of $600 aggregate on suspected counters. One player may bet 3 to 6 boxes (different casinos allow different numbers of hands). Suspected counters may be restricted to a 10-unit bet spread.
Risks of Playing at Casinos in Nepal
All casinos are at Kathmandu, the capital, which is quite safe. (Rebels are at remote towns.) There is, however, severe foreign exchange control in this FX-short country. People bringing in more than $2,000 need to declare it and get a stamped duplication of the declaration. Read that again and make sure you understand it, because the Customs officials make no mention of this required duplicate form when you declare the funds you are carrying, which gives crooked Customs officers an opportunity to set up unsuspecting visitors for trouble when they later attempt to leave the country.
Customs officers can get 20% on catching undeclared money, so they routinely “lose” the paperwork if you fail to ask for a duplicate of your declaration form. I declared my money but was not given the duplicate certificate and ended up jailed for 76 days. (More on this later … )
Currency Control in Nepal
You can’t bring out more than you declared. You can’t buy traveler’s checks in Nepal. The Nepal casinos will not give you proof of your winnings, so you have to take the risk of transmitting any casino winnings out through black market or smuggle them out yourself.
Food in Nepal
Buffet and a la carte are offered to gamblers. Locals are not allowed to gamble, theoretically. Indians are major customers so most foods are curry flavored and beef is not offered regularly. There is a Chinese restaurant at Everest Hotel.
Comps at Casinos in Nepal
Food is comped. Yak & Yeti requires a $50 average bet for 4 hours for a room comp. Everest requires a $20 average bet for the same 4-hour time frame.
Major Attractions in Nepal
Mountain Everest ($109 for mountain flight), Palaces (3 World Heritage Sites at Kathmandu). Casinos will send cars for a city tour.
Souvenirs in Nepal
Crafts, textiles, metal castings, and wood carvings.
Blackjack Travelings in Nepal
Nepal is a mountainous country between China and India. It shares Mount Everest with China and charges high fees for climbers. The country is land-locked and has one of the lowest per capita annual incomes ($250, two-thirds that of Bangladesh) in the world.
Most travelers fly from Bangkok and New Delhi. Most people get a landing visa. The hotel reservation counter asked for $150 for a room at Yak & Yeti, which we found out from casinocity.com was the hotel with the largest casino. I didn’t take it for the possibility of room comps. The clerk offered a 50% discount to lure me. I paid $3.50 for a taxi going to the hotel ($2 should be enough).
Yak & Yeti Casino
There is a name for the casino at the Yak & Yeti Hotel but I see no reason for differentiating the casino from the hotel, thus I always use the hotel name for the casino. We found a casino host to ask for a room. He made the room reservation for us at the casino rate and said the room could be comped based on our play.
The casino was medium sized with about 20 tables offering BJ, pontoon, flush (a 9-card poker game), baccarat, and roulette. I later learned that the casino leases space from the hotel for $20,000 a month. The casino employs 600 people. A dealer makes about $100 a month working 40 hours a week, which is generous compared to Sri Lanka (where dealers get $100 a month working 72 hours a week in a country with a per capita income three times that of Nepal).
There are four blackjack tables, which are also used for pontoon. Most Indians play pontoon. The house edge at blackjack is about 0.50% off the top. Penetration was good but became worse after we jumped our bets. It was hand-shuffled but the cards are washed before every shuffle.
We took a casino car for a city tour and shopping, and went to Buddha’s birthplace (Lumbini) for a one night stay.
The Nepal casinos publish a quarterly English gaming magazine called Casino Times with articles on all aspects of gambling, including card counting. Indian gamblers play blackjack poorly and like to split 10s. The casino doesn’t care about minors gambling. We sat playing together with a 12-year old boy who scorned his father for hitting 12 against a dealer’s 6.
Customers were treated courteously. A player complained about bad cards and the pit boss asked the relief dealers to line up for the player to pick. There are three small rooms at the casino. Customers can get free massages, haircuts, and have their fortunes told. There is a restaurant in the gaming hall with a platform for live dancing every night. The casino hires many beautiful hostesses to walk around lighting cigarettes and changing money for players.
Annapuma Casino
The Annapuma Casino is a 5-minute walk from Yak & Yeti. This casino is the smallest one with about 10 tables. It had bad penetration (50%) as soon as we sat down. Pit bosses were very nervous about BIG ($100) bets. My friend jumped in betting $100 on the last hand. The next shoe he bet $3. The pit boss said he could only spread to 20 times his smallest bet.
Lumbini Casino
At the Lumbini Casino the host would only comp 2 nights (of 4). We threatened to move to Everest, which asked for only a $20 average bet for 4 hours a day. He agreed on future room comps if we bet a $50 average. Indians got better terms. For Indians, a buy-in of $1,000 would automatically get them 4 nights. The Nepal hotels also charge twice the room rate for non-Indians and locals.
We hired a car with a driver. The quote from the casino host was worse than the travel agent’s. He suggested we get a car without air conditioning for $30 less. We took the cheaper option, as we would travel mostly in the mountain range.
We were told it took 8 hours for the 200-mile trip due to traffic jams and winding roads. We rode up and down along the Trisuli River. The car was hot when we ascended to the plain. We found that the car was in fact owned by the casino host, so we asked the driver what would happen if we wanted an air-conditioned one. He told us it would be the same car with the air conditioning turned on! We bribed the driver $10 for the air conditioning (which worked poorly). We later went to India and found that Indian taxis charge a 40% premium for turning on the air conditioning.
There is a small temple beside the point where Buddah’s mother gave birth to him 2,500 years ago under a tree. The tree had long gone. A stone marked the spot. King Ashoka erected a 6-meter stone rod in 245 B.C. On our way back we went for the 3-km cable ride to Manakamana Devi Temple. There are many beautiful stones along the Trisui River bank. It would be nice for rafting and stone picking.
Durban Square Casinos
There are three Durban Square Casinos at or near Kathmandu. We went to the one at Bhaktaur. There are many delicate wooden structures there. We (Taiwanese) were asked to pay a $10 admission fee, higher than Chinese and Indians pay (70 cents). Yak & Yeti gave us good cuts. We won about $10,000 from the blackjack table. My friend lost $11,000 at the baccarat table, however. He lost $4,000 at baccarat in one shoe, a sad contrast to a robbery of the casino cashier that day. The robber took $3,000, killing the clerk and wounding a security guard.
Everest Casino
Everest allowed us to bet up to the $2,100 table maximum. (Yak & Yeti allowed us to bet only $600 maximum). We lost $4,000 there. The dealer got 4 blackjacks on my last four hands at Yak & Yeti. I insured three. It was time to leave … or was it too late…?
Jailed on Trying to Leave Nepal
As we were leaving the country, at Customs, I declared for my friend. As we had lost overall in the casinos, I was taking less money out of Nepal than I’d come in with. The airport security found my money (which was not hidden). He asked for “proof” of my declaration, which I had not been given when I’d entered the country. (I had declared $26,000 when I’d entered Nepal, as requested on the Customs form. The Customs officer asked why I brought so much money in, and I said for gambling. He took my declaration form, shrugged and waived me away. He never gave me a duplicate of that form.)
I was taken to the Security Director’s Office who asked the Customs Director for the Declaration File. He said there was no record of my declaration! The Customs Director brought two empty forms with him. They asked for $4,000 for filling out the forms on the spot, and to release my $22,700 in “undeclared” funds. I refused to pay such a high bribe for a crime I didn’t commit.
It was Friday. Three armed guards took me to Customs Custody. All of my money was confiscated. Seven prisoners were sitting or lying on the 7-square-meter cell floor without blankets or pillows. Three of them were there for drunken fighting and two were drug offenders. There was no light in the cell. Prisoners had to buy their own food and water. I chose not to eat. The jailer gave me some bananas.
My girlfriend went to the casino for help. The casino management was very sympathetic and tried hard to rescue me. My friend also contacted the Chinese Embassy, which didn’t care about Taiwanese. I had about 70 bug bites on my feet after three nights in custody.
The Revenue Investigation Department had a 7-day interrogation period for my case. Seventeen customs and airport security guards fingerprinted me on my “catch report.” I was told they could share 20% of my “undeclared” money, which amounted to about five months of their combined salaries.
The Revenue Investigator asked for $650 (50,000 Nepal Rupees) for handling my case. I learned that several months ago a Taiwanese incurred similar charges and had paid the same amount. I was willing after three nights of hell, but would not pay in advance. The investigator said, “No money, no good report!” He said he had to share the bribe with 4 other people. I told him all my money had been confiscated. He suggested we borrow money from the casino host who accompanied us.
We finally gave him $150 as an advance. He recommended a only a one-year sentence. I was sent to a formal jail. There were bars at the entrance but not in the jail. About 250 prisoners lived in five big rooms circling a garden. The jail was designed for only 150 prisoners. Prisoners slept side by side. Each person had a space about 70 centimeters wide. We slept on the floor. A senior prisoner took me around telling me jail rules such as not sitting at certain spots.
The newcomers were required to clean toilets for some time. I could pay a $6 one-time charge if I didn’t want the work. After the initial donation, I needed to pay 50 cents every month.
Prisoners did not need do any work, but could make 60 cents a day making necklaces. The prisoners included girl traffickers (10 years), drug dealers (10 years), over-stayers (10 years), and murderers (20 years). The prisoner who slept beside me had sold his wife, sister, and MOTHER to India. Eight Tibetans, including three monks, were in the jail for going to India to see the Dalai Lama without a passport. There were also prisoners with similar cases to mine. I learned that most who had been victimized by the crooked Customs agents spent a month or so in prison, then were let out of the country empty handed.
Many prisoners could be released just by paying money. The Tibetans could be out of the jail any time just for paying about $1,500 each. They could then go to India after their release. If they could not come up with the money in 5 years, they would be sent to China where they would face three years in a labor camp and a $1,000 fine. The Tibetans helped me, generously giving me a bed sheet and blanket. Each prisoner was given a 24-cent food allowance plus 700 grams of rice per day. There was a food stand at the jail. Some prisoners would cook chickens or potato cakes for sale.
The casino gave my girlfriend a free room (for 3 months). She brought casino food to me everyday, including mineral water. The Casino’s Food and Beverage Manager was asked to coordinate the efforts in rescuing me. He cooked many delicious meals for me to share with the Tibetans.
The most difficult part of jail life was the boredom and the mosquitoes. A Czech prisoner left his mosquito net and a lam for me, which was a great relief. I borrowed some novels from the jail library and started writing my fifth book and a jail diary. Prisoners could buy most things from the jail. A British prisoner installed cable TV. He said he watched thousands of movies every year. I thought I would get out in a few days, then a few weeks, then months. A casino staff person arranged for my girlfriend to see the Attorney General, who was sympathetic but couldn’t help as the revenue case was beyond his authority.
On the 11th day of my imprisonment, the Nepal King went to visit China. The 12th day was my birthday and a Nepalese holiday celebrating the King’s China trip. This country found any excuse for a holiday. There was later a holiday for the birth of the Prince’s child.
On the 20th day, I went in handcuffs to the Special Court. Most revenue cases were settled on this day. I listened to the prosecutor describe how a first-time visitor like myself who had attempted to “smuggle” money out of the country deserved a one-year sentence.
I was taken to a separate room to wait for the judges’ decision. The court guard came for me after 20 minutes shaking head and raised two fingers. “Two what?” I thought. “Two months? Two years?” It turned out the court wanted testimonies from the airport security guards within two weeks. The jail guards said I was unfortunate and, “No decision was very typical in Nepal courts.”
Meanwhile, the Nepal King returned successfully from China on the 21st day. He got a $10 million grant from China. I hoped that would help his foreign reserve and spare me…
On the 26th day, the Special Court refused my bail. My lawyer applied to the Supreme Court, which was closed for annual maintenance. My girlfriend talked to the Nepal Tourism Board, which politely declined to help me. The Board’s mission was to pull in tourists, not help them after they were there.
I found I needed new holes on my belt after one month in jail. I would have lost more weight without the casino food. A Czech told me he had a bad stomach from drinking the jail water. I drank a 2-liter bottle of Coke everyday and became the bottle supplier in the jail. Most prisoners needed big bottles for storing water.
I got a place at the flat on the 35th day, when 27 prisoners were sent to a bigger jail. Thanks to the cigarettes I gave to the prisoner head, I got a wider, one-meter sleeping space. I learned that my mother had lost 4 kilos worrying about me, which was a shame as my mother was thin.
I heard many stories about the crooked Customs Department. A Nepoli returned with a gold chain. Customs charged him $150 tax. He said his brother worked at Customs. The guy got his name but collected the money anyway saying his brother would get a share. He found the Custom officer threw away his tax form and pocketed the money. My girlfriend arranged to see a judge in private. The judge would not take money from her and warned her not to give money to a broker. The judge said he would do his best but they were pressed to confiscate the money.
The regular days at the Nepal jail were, in fact, quite relaxing. A friend translated talks among the Nepolis for me. They said the jail life was better than their country life, as in the jail they had water, TV, and a roof.
There was one Nepoli prisoner who refused to leave and had to be thrown out. Another prisoner went in and out 21 times. Some were jailed for minor offences. A prisoner was jailed for 7 months for not paying a $16 fine.
The Supreme Court refused my bail on the 43rd day as part of my money was in traveler’s checks signed by others. This was really unreasonable as I was told on my later trip that traveler’s checks did not need to be declared. I was taken to the Special Court hearing. Airport security guards lied about me “hiding money in a belt.” There was never a belt and their testimony was in conflict with the original catch report.
I had to pay for the taxi to court and also had to buy lunches for the guards. Then I learned the Special Court did not, in fact, have the authority to make a decision on my case, as the government was considering its fate. 400 cases were withheld for two months.
Several Germans visited a Tibetan in the jail. They had read his letter soliciting help in a German newspaper. They said they would put up the money ($1,400) to bail him out. The Tibetan was excited and started packing. They never came for him. We learned that several days later a small plane had crashed at Pohara, a mountain town, and 14 German tourists were killed.
I ran out of interesting books and writing ideas on the 50th day. The jail time had exceeded my expectations. The British lent me some books and recommended some books for me to buy. It took me three to four days to finish one English novel at jail. The last book I had in jail was Tom Clancy’s Executive Order. I read half in jail, and finished the rest in half a year.
The Nepal Corruption Investigation Unit searched 22 Customs officers’ homes, including the Director of the Airport Customs Department. Tons of “undeclared” wealth was found. One customs clerk had the equivalent of 120 years’ salary at his home. I finally saw some light for my case.
The Nepal. jail supposedly housed the worst people of their society, but I felt no fear among the Nepal prisoners. While I was writing my diary, I could see seven prisoners making necklaces for 60 cents a day.
The 55th day was my scheduled court date but I knew it would be cancelled as the government had appointed three new judges for the Special Court. I did the regular jail routine: woke up late, brushed teeth for ten minutes, took turns for toilet (250 shared 4 toilets), walked around the garden, chatted, bathed, ate, washed clothes, watched locals sing and dance, waited for visitors, ate, brushed, went to bed at 9 pm. Most prisoners lived a similar life of just wasting time. The only difference for most prisoners after jail was that they were older. I thought training or some education for these prisoners would be a good investment for the society.
The new judges were finally settled in and set a date for my trial, which was then postponed for a big bank forgery case. A bank manager who was jailed for the bank case said I was lucky because I would get to leave Nepal eventually, while they were stuck for life. I received a new trial date on my 71st day in jail. There was an article in the newspaper about a girl who had been jailed for over six years because the decision paper on her case was missing.
I was found not guilty on the 75th day but I had to spend another night in jail, as I needed to report to the Immigration Department. A judge told me I had to wait 130 days for my money. He also said this was a small mistake and could happen in any country.
I was finally released after 76 days in jail. The jailer made one last effort to delay my release, as he said he could not find a guard to transport me to the Immigration Department ten minutes away. A guard appeared mysteriously after I bribed him $12! I needed a new visa but couldn’t get it as the Revenue Investigator who had confiscated my passport was not in his office. I got the visa the second day but was fined for two days’ late fee (one day for the court ruling time after the Immigration Department closed, one day for waiting for my visa).
I went back Nepal after 6 months for my money only to learn that it would take the Special Court four more months to write up my case’s decision paper. And I couldn’t get my money, as there was also a “waiting period” for the Attorney General’s Office to decide on appealing my case for the government. So I paid another bribe for the Court register to speed up my case… It seemed I had missed my last payment.
Two months later, a court broker sought me to tell me I could come for my money. I again returned to Nepal, but found again that the money was not there for me. He had conned me back to Nepal so that he could “broker” my case for me with the Attorney General’s Office. I declined his offer, as I didn’t trust any officials in Nepal any more.
I finally got my money back 10 months after my release from jail. I got $420 extra on local currency appreciation, but another $2,000 was missing. We went to the court to inquire about it. The money appeared mysteriously the second day. Despite the gracious help of the Nepal casinos and many nice Nepolis, I would never go back to Nepal. I hope (but doubt) I will be the last one suffering from Nepal’s crooked government officers. Up to my last trip to Nepal, there was still no mention of a declaration certification form at Customs, which means innocent tourists like myself can land at the Nepal jail at any Customs officer’s will.
I lost 15 kilos (33 pounds) during my 76 days in jail. What have I learned? First, bribe your way out on the spot. Second, be cautious in handling foreign currency exchanges, and get evidence of your declaration, especially in any uncivilized country. Third, if you come across a similar unfortunate experience, be calm and use your jail time effectively. Fourth, avoid traveling on Fridays. ♠