A Chinese man has been charged in Singapore for allegedly faking his own kidnapping to free himself of gambling debt.

Liu Changjian, 33, staged his own kidnapping and tried to extort a ransom of 30,000 yuan (£3,251) from his aunt Madam Liu Ya Bo in China.

He entered Singapore on a tourist visa on 1 March and was to leave the country on 6 March, but did not leave, police said.

An investigation revealed that Mr Liu had piled on a gambling debt of between S$20,000 (£11,709) and S$30,000 (£17,563) during his stay in the city-state.

In a press release, Singapore police said Mr Liu sent messages to his aunt last week and pretended to be his own kidnapper.

He visited the Marina Bay Sands Casino on 7 and 8 March when he put his plan in motion, according to court documents.

His aunt, who was in China, received a WeChat text message from an unknown person demanding a ransom for the release of Mr Liu, forwarding identification documents.

“In the text messages, the unknown person forwarded the photo of the man’s travel document as proof,” said the police.

The woman alerted Mr Liu’s father, who was also in China. The father called the Singapore Police Force (SPF) to seek help on 9 March.

An investigation was launched and police conducted “extensive searches and investigations” to find Mr Liu, the police said.

Mr Lui was found “safe and sound” in the Marina Bay area just three hours after they were alerted by his father.

He pleaded not guilty as he appeared in court via video-link while on remand.

Mr Lui was charged with attempted cheating and faced up to 10 years in jail or fine if convicted.