Italian federal police in online gambling bust

According to a report from the Italian ANSA news agency, federal police in Salerno, Italy have busted a major criminal organisation which managed illegal online gambling websites.

Sources told the agency that eight suspects are currently detained, and a further 10 are under house arrest as part of ‘Operation Jamm Jamm’.

The group, based in Salerno in southern Italy, allegedly operated across the country but particularly in the southern Basilicata, Calabria, and Campania regions. They used the platforms of foreign websites that were illegally active in Italy, it is claimed.

The origins of the criminal organisation have apparently been traced back to the Contaldo di Pagani clan linked to the Camorra, Naples’ mafia organisation.

The network was expanded through collaboration with clans in other parts of Italy, and the leader, Antonio Contaldo (50) stands accused of using several online platforms to collect funds from illegal online bets and poker.

There are also allegations that the gambling on offer was rigged against the players, and that illegal investments in the Jamm Jamm disco in the town of San Valentino Torio have been seized by police investigators.

The ANSA report indicates that a total of 64 suspects are under investigation on charges including criminal conspiracy and illegal gambling. Police have also shuttered 23 businesses – including an illegal dentist’s office – and real estate properties.

Eleven web sites have reportedly been shut down, but no details were available when we went to press late Thursday.