The inquiry heard that Chinese-born Mr Lee is an Australian citizen and has lived in NSW for more than two decades. 'Is it right that on at least one occasion at Star you swiped your China UnionPay card on multiple occasions in very close proximity to each other debiting $900,000 at a time?' Ms Sharp asked. The inquiry went through a series of receipts with Mr Lee showing multiple transactions of nearly $1 million. 'Correct,' Mr Lee replied, through a translator. 'Is it correct that on 6 April 2015 you debited your China UnionPay card for $11 million to purchase chips or pay back a casino debt at The Star casino?' counsel assisting Naomi Sharp SC asked. Today, high roller property developer Phillip Dong Fang Lee told the inquiry he would spend millions in a day at the casino.
Star employees have already admitted misleading the National Australia Bank (NAB) when it inquired on behalf of China UnionPay for reassurances that cards were not being used for gambling, stating that they were used for 'entertainment' or 'accommodation services', and omitting gaming expenses. It has previously heard that cards issued by the China UnionPay bank were only allowed to be used for non-gambling expenses, under an agreement with the bank.
The inquiry is investigating Star Entertainment's suitability to run its casino at Pyrmont.
