Uncles Gather & Gamble At Yishun Stairwell Till Late, Residents Raise Noise Complaints

8 To 10 Uncles Spotted Gambling At Yishun Stairwell On 11 Jun

After a long day, all we want to do is go home and get a good night’s sleep. But sometimes, noise disruptions can throw these plans into disarray.

On Saturday (11 Jun), 50-year-old Mr Lin, a Yishun resident, was about to rest when he heard people talking loudly outside.

Looking through his window, he spotted a group of eight to ten men gambling at the stairwell.

Another resident later told Shin Min Daily News that when her grandson returned home at 4am, the uncles were still gambling.

Noise levels disrupt residents

On Saturday (11 Jun), Yishun resident Mr Lin was about to take a shower at around 11pm when he allegedly heard voices outside his home.

Looking out the window, he saw a group of people sitting around a table at the stairwell between the second and third floors of Block 284 Yishun Avenue 6.

Upon taking a closer look, he noticed that they were gambling, occasionally fishing out money from their pockets.

Shin Min Daily News reported that the video footage showed between eight to ten men at the gathering.

Gambling between friends is not a problem, Mr Lin said, but it should be done within the confines of a home.

He claimed that the gathering went on even after 1am, with the uncles smoking and drinking alcohol, their noise levels disrupting residents.

Uncles in Yishun allegedly gamble past 4am

When Shin Min Daily News reporters visited the HDB block on Sunday (12 Jun), they reportedly spotted several tables and plastic chairs along the second floor corridor.

However, when interviewed, the flat’s owner declined to comment.

Their 62-year-old neighbour later shared that people had been setting up the makeshift tables and chairs at the stairwell since 11 Jun afternoon.

She originally believed they were celebrating a festival of some kind.

But when her grandson returned home at around 4am in the morning, they were still gathering at the stairwell.

The neighbour added that since it was just for the day, she wouldn’t mind if the group had merely set the tables and chairs set up for a meal.

However, if the setup was for punters to gamble, she felt that it’s not acceptable.

Social gambling only legal in a person’s home

On 11 Mar, the Parliament passed the Gambling Control Bill, legalising social gambling in a person’s home.

All participants have to be from the same family or know each other personally, reported AsiaOne.

Those found guilty of running an illegal gambling house may incur fines between S$5,000 and S$50,000 and face up to three years in jail.

Participants in an illegal gambling house may be fined up to S$5,000 or jailed for up to six months, or both.

Hope gamblers will be more considerate

The uncles gambling in a public space late into the night evidently disrupted residents’ peace and quiet.

While gambling is not always wrong, it should only be done within the parameters of the law.

Hopefully, they will be more considerate and at the very least, move the merrymaking indoors in future.

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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News and Google Maps.