Kiwis and Aussies arrested on internet gambling charges in Thailand

Only sketchy details are currently available on a report in the Thai media that Pattaya police have busted an illegal online sportsbetting enterprise operated behind a bar by a 59-year-old New Zealander named as Philip Smith.

Smith told police he had been accepting bets and paying according to the website rate, while receiving a commission, for a long time.

Six as yet unnamed Australians were also arrested when the local police raided the Ned Kelly Bar in the tourist hotspot. They are believed to be friends of Smith who regularly bet on horse races Downunder through his online services.

Pattaya police said the raid followed public complaints and an eight-month investigation that included the use of an undercover “foreign informant” who placed illegal bets on races in the bar.

The Australian and New Zealand Foreign affairs ministries were investigating the report Saturday.

Online gambling in Thailand is illegal, with betting allowed only on the official state lottery and in domestic horse racing.