Numerous betting rackets revolving around the ongoing UEFA Euro 2016 championship which is currently taking place in France have been busted throughout the Asian continent. The Ministry of Public Security in Vietnam arrested 12 persons for operating a betting operation in Ho Chi Min City. The two alleged ringleaders are said to have links with other betting rings in the country which have been targeted by police recently.
The most recent bust involved betting activities worth VND 450 billion (US $20 million) through several Philippines-based websites, such as v9bet.com and Bong88.com.
Around 200 accounts had been opened by the operators with money lenders as well as banks to facilitate the transfer of funds from clients.
In Singapore, 10 men were arrested for having been involved in illegal wagers on Euro 2016 Soccer Tournament.The country’s Criminal Investigation Department said that the team of operators had managed wagers worth over $2.4 million over the past two weeks. Cash estimated to be around $400,000 was seized in addition to betting records and gadgets such as mobile phones and computers.
Police in Bangkok, Thailand arrested 11 men who are suspected to be agents for an unknown licensed international website. As agents, these men received 5 percent commission of the proceeds. Operating out of a private residence, the ring had 3,200 customers and was working round the clock. The racket was being run by a staff of 20 people each working in 12 hour shifts.
In Malaysia police raided a house in Johor Baru, the capital city of southern state of Johor on July 3 and arrested one man .The betting syndicate was accepting bets estimated to be around RM21million (£4 million) and offering credit limits to its customers in the range of RM2 million and RM10 million. Computers, phones and betting papers were also seized in the raid. A few days earlier, police also raided another betting racket in the city that ran wagers estimated to be around RM 3.5 million. The ring utilized five websites and had over 27 men acting as agents in 25 different locations. All 27 men were arrested.
The Hong Kong police also stepped up their efforts to crackdown on Euro 2016 illegal betting operations by launching Operation Crowbeak and successfully nabbed 50 people and in doing so confiscated over HKD 130 million (US $16.7 million) in betting slips for Euro 2016. Hong Kong police officials revealed that betting syndicates were now depending on encrypted digital records via WhatsApp instead of betting slips to record bets which was forcing police to consult cyber-security experts in the police department.
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