Aspinall’s Gambler is suing for failing to pay off a $725,000 drunken debt

A player at Crown London Aspinalls lost over $700,000 after saying he was constantly being provided with free drinks. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

A drunk night at Aspinalls ends badly

A high roller at the Crown London Aspinalls Casino claims staff kept him “drinking drunk” until he suffered losses of £600,000 ($725,000).

constantly brought him “firewater” until he was well over the legal limit

Lester Hui says that one night in 2016, casino staff kept bringing him “firewater” until he was well over the legal limit. He is now being sued by the casino for refusing to pay his outstanding debt.

Hui’s legal team alleges that Aspinalls failed to meet its “social obligations” that came with its gaming license. Therefore, they don’t think Hui should be held responsible for any losses that night.

A goal of the casino?

Despite arguments from Hui and his lawyers, Aspinalls demands that he pay off his debt.

by drunkenness he would gamble away large sums of money and thus lose for financial gain [Aspinalls]”

Hui says the casino brought him a Chinese liquor called Moutai, which has an alcohol content of 53% and is commonly known as “firewater.” He also says the staff “deliberately failed to intervene to stop him from gambling … so that he would gamble large sums of drunkenness and thus lose for financial gain.” [Aspinalls].”

The casino believes that these claims are unfounded and that Hui was sober enough to make rational decisions during his visit, even driving home early in the morning after his night was over.

According to a court testimony, Hui started the night in the black before his luck took a hit and he ended up losing just under £600,000 ($725,000). Aspinalls also claims that Hui wrote them a check for the exact amount of the losses, but that check bounced when the casino tried to cash it.

The casino also said it made several attempts to settle the matter with Hui out of court, but was forced to file a lawsuit in September 2019. Hui had been a member of the club since 1996.

Aspinall’s case

The case takes another layer as Hui claims that upon entering the casino he told staff he was getting drunk and wanted to cut his losses to £30,000 ($36,000). According to his story, the staff still served him plenty of free drinks and allowed his debt to pile up to the £600,000 ($725,000) amount he is seeking to repay.

Alexander Robson, a lawyer speaking for Aspinalls, said Hui’s claims were ridiculous and unfounded. He also questioned why a club with Aspinalls’ reputation would risk its name to swindle money from a drunk patron who has been visiting the club for 20 years.

“That would expose the club to serious reputational damage,” said Robson. “The club wants to build on its long-term reputation based on the trust between the club and its customers.”

denied that Hui had asked to impose a £30,000 ($36,000) debt limit on himself

Robson also cited surveillance camera footage which he claims showed “no concerns” about Hui’s alleged drunken behavior. He also denied that Hui had asked to impose a £30,000 ($36,000) debt limit on himself.

The same casino was convicted by a tribunal of racial discrimination in 2021 following a lawsuit filed by a former employee. According to the plaintiff, the casino allowed visitors to refer to black chips as “n***** chips” and granted requests to swap black dealers for white ones.

The casino plans to file a series of emails from 2015 proving that if Hui had been drunk he would not be allowed to continue playing. The club’s former marketing director and a colleague also testified that they met with Hui on the night of his visit, having previously had a relationship with him, including playing golf together, and they had no concerns about his drunkenness.

The case is not yet closed.