Chinese woman marries 14 men in Vegas to fund gambling, loses millions

A 33-year-old Chinese national, Jiaying Chen, faces serious charges in Las Vegas for allegedly orchestrating a complex scheme of marrying multiple men to fund her gambling addiction. Court documents reveal she submitted 14 marriage applications to Clark County, Nevada, between March 2019 and May 2024, with seven resulting in marriage certificates.

Chen was initially arrested by Las Vegas police in 2024 on charges of bigamy and theft but disappeared after posting bail. She was apprehended again in June of the previous year. Authorities discovered she had been using aliases, including "Vicky Liang," and had filed eight more marriage applications, securing seven additional marriage certificates, bringing her total to 14 marriages.

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Not everyone pays, so they don't get a marriage certificate.

Investigators found that Chen utilized forged documents and provided false information in her marriage applications. She primarily met men through social media platforms, quickly proposing marriage. Subsequently, she would solicit money by claiming relatives in China were ill and in urgent need of medical funds. After receiving the money, she would sever all contact.

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Each marriage can earn about $20,000.

When questioned by police about why not all marriage applications led to completed registrations, Chen allegedly responded, "Not everyone pays, so they don't get a marriage certificate." Reports indicate she was simultaneously married to six different individuals as of last month. Chen admitted that she could earn approximately $20,000 per marriage and chose Las Vegas specifically because "it's too easy to get married there."

An examination of Chen's gambling records revealed she lost over $300,000 (approximately NT$9.61 million) at the Wynn casino in the past year alone. The funds she defrauded were not sent to overseas relatives but were entirely spent on gambling.

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I only marry in Las Vegas because it's too easy to get married there.