NZ - “Loan sharks cruise casino to lure gamblers: MP”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10447025
5:00AM Thursday June 21, 2007
The New Zealand Herald
By Stuart Dye
Loan sharks are luring gamblers by approaching them as they ponder their losses inside the casino, Parliament was told yesterday.
Green MP Sue Bradford said gamblers at the SkyCity casino in Auckland were borrowing as much as $10,000 a time to continue playing.
In some cases, she said, gamblers were introduced to the loan shark by a casino dealer.
The Government has ordered an investigation into allegations of loan sharking and financial irregularities at Christchurch Casino.
But the Green Party wants a wider public inquiry. Speaking under parliamentary privilege, Ms Bradford told MPs there were believed to be 10 loan shark groups working at SkyCity in Auckland, both on the ground floor and in the VIP lounges.
“It has been reported to me that the minimum loan in the VIP area is $10,000,” Ms Bradford said.
Those who fell behind in repayments faced threats and some women had even been forced into prostitution to work off their debt, she said.
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