Sup fellow degens, 

I hope the preparation for the weekend is looking good. Christmas is around the corner; don't spend family vacation money on baccarat. 

In this industry, we complain about predatory behavior all the time. We complain when a casino freezes a withdrawal or when a slot machine eats 500 spins without a bonus. 

We call that a scam. 

But we forget what actual predatory behavior looks like in the underground scene. 

In our world, if you go into debt, you get a nasty email and a banned IP address.

In the illegal gambling world? You get a fake invite to play golf, a bag thrown over your head, and a one-way ticket to a warehouse. 

Online KYC (Know Your Customer) is annoying. But Physical KYC (Kick Your Chest) is a whole lot worse. 

In February 2024, a Taiwanese woman named Lin Mei hatched a plan with her Chinese male roommate, Wu Zhibing. 

The victim of the plan owed Lin S$25,000 ($18,000) in November 2023. They had met through illegal gambling. 

Lin told the victim, “Hey, let's meet at my place and go play golf.” 

Pro tip: if you owe someone $18,000 and they invite you to a secluded location for a leisure activity, do not go. They do not plan to work on their putting. 

The victim showed up. 

Instead of Tiger Woods moments, she got ambushed. 

Wu was waiting. He threw a bag over the victim's head, restrained her, and dragged her into a warehouse along Jalan Buroh, Singapore. 

They didn't just hold her; they cable-tied her hands and legs to a chair. 

For five hours (between 4 AM and 9 AM), Lin demanded money. Slaps, sticks, scare tactics, Lin was all over the victim. 

But the degen side soon showed. 

Lin no longer wanted the S$25,000 owed. She wanted S$200,000. She had heard a rumour that the victim had sold her house for S$300,000. 

The degen greed reared its nasty head. It wasn't about recovering the debt anymore; it was about liquidating the player entirely. 

The victim, who was likely broke and gambling her way through it, insisted she had no money. Eventually, she called a friend who agreed to cough up S$30,000 to get her released. 

After she paid her debt, she was released. 

Lin and Wu let the victim go at 9 AM. They warned her not to call the police. 

Of course, she called the police. 

A degen gambling her way through debts cannot be trusted. 

The police arrested Lin and Wu and charged them to court. 

The Verdict: 

The truth about the degen life is that playing with debt means you have lost. When you are defeated, you don't want some waterboarding and shouting in your ears to pay debt.

And this is why smart degens tilt towards the blockchain. 

“Trustless" on the blockchain means we don't need to trust each other because the smart contract handles that. If you lose, the smart contract takes your ETH. It doesn't ask for your address, and it certainly won't invite you to play golf at 4 AM. 

In the underground world, the game is different. 

Infinite leverage: 

They offer you infinite leverage because underground bookies love giving you credit. You lose $5k, and they tell you to pay next week. $10k? “Don't worry, it's double or nothing." 

They love to dig a hole so deep you can't climb out. Then, they own you. 

Crypto allows you to hit zero and tap out. In the real world, you're the asset being liquidated. 

Physical KYC (Kick Your Chest): 

I know we like to complain about KYC everywhere. But I would rather send my utility bills or passport to a compliance officer based in Bermuda than have a “meeting" with a loan shark in a warehouse. 

They don't care about anti-money laundering laws in the underground, they care about breaking your hands. 

If you are reading this and you owe a guy named "Knuckles” or a woman itching to golf with you…run or just pay. 

The better option is not to get in that deep. Play with what you have. If your wallet is empty, go home. 

Stay safe. And stay liquid.

TL;DR: A gambler owing $18k was lured to a fake golf meetup, kidnapped, and extorted for hours - highlighting how underground gambling debt can turn violent fast, unlike the trustless safety of on-chain systems.

Stay degen,

Dima