Singapore police have arrested 33 individuals for allegedly being part of an illegal online gambling ring. Of those, 11 appeared before court earlier today and were charged for providing illicit gambling options to Singapore citizens.
The arrests occurred during statewide police raids on Sunday. Police officers raided more than 30 locations, seizing over S$1.3 million in cash as well as the equipment allegedly used for the gambling operations. What is more, all suspects’ bank accounts were frozen. It was found that those contained a total of S$6.5 million. It was also ordered that the suspects’ properties, valued at around S$40 million, be frozen.
The detained individuals are to be investigated and prosecuted in accordance with the Singapore Organized Crime and Remote Gambling Acts. The Organized Crime Act was adopted last summer, targeting organized crime groups and their highest ranking members. Generally speaking, the law allows the police to seize and freeze such groups’ illegal assets and activities before their members face any criminal conviction.
Under said legislation, individuals who are found to have indeed participated in organized crime activities are subject to tough fines and/or time in prison.
Being linked to an organized crime syndicate, the 33 recently detained individuals may have to forfeit up to S$100,000 each and/or to spend up to five years behind bars. What is more, under the Singapore’s Remote Gambling Act, they may face fines of between S$20,000 and S$500,000 each and/or to be sentenced to up to seven years in prison.
As reported by local police, those arrested operated a number of illegal gambling websites, with those offering horse betting and lottery options. According to a Monday press release, the gambling operations have collected more than S$2 million in wagers over the past month.
The illegal gambling ring has allegedly attracted agents and bettors through its websites. Some of the arrested individuals have been registered as the websites’ owners. And some of them have collected bets and tallied betting accounts.
The 33 detained individuals – 24 men and 9 women – are to appear before court on December 6. They will also be expected to assist the ongoing investigation.
The Sunday raids took place about a month after two entities – Singapore Pools and the Singapore Turf Club – were given regulatory approval to launch online lottery and betting operations under specific requirements. Apart from the two websites, online gambling is illegal in Singapore.
