Pals barred from bingo ‘because of passports’

A BINGO hall allegedly refused to allow two Cardiff residents to enter as they had European passports.

Fabrizio Gulino, who was born in Italy, Sandija Girisle, who was born in Latvia, and another Italian man named Antonio, said they had gone to Castle Bingo on Cowbridge Road in Canton for an evening out.

They said that two of them only had passports as ID but were refused entry because the firm had a policy of only accepting British passports to prove age.

We approached Castle Bingo with their allegation on Tuesday but the firm has not provided a response.

Mr Gulino, 24, who runs an accommodation firm and has lived in Cardiff since January last year, said they had gone to the bingo hall on Sunday, October 8, at 7pm.

He said: “I had an Italian driving licence but they said my friends were not OK to come in with their Italian and Latvian passports.

He said: “We spoke with the receptionist and then the manager. I said that passports are accepted everywhere and they just said that they were accepting only UK forms of ID.”

He added: “They were looking at their passports like there were not credible.”

His friends were left very upset by their experience.

He said: “My friend from Latvia was very upset. She is 29 and does not look under age. We were just trying to play bingo.”

That friend was Sandija Girisle. She said: “I work in a casino myself and they take IDs from all countries. My Latvian passport even has English translations on it on parts like the expiry date.

“I was shocked, I was like ‘how does this even happen?.’

“Maybe it was because wearing make-up.

“There were three people there and everyone was saying different things so I don’t think it was a real policy.

“I have never come across anything like this in the UK.”

Ruth Coombs, head of Wales for the I wasn’t Equality and Human Rights Commission, said that a policy of only accepting UK passports would be against the law.

She said: “If these people were not allowed into the bingo hall because it refused to accept non UK passports, it’s unlawful.

“It’s unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of race, which the Equality Act 2010 defines as colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins, no matter what the service provider’s motive or intention.”