Singapore and Vietnam remote gambling raids

Singapore Police flexed their muscle with their first successful, and one of the largest, operations carried out under the country’s newly adopted Organized Criminal Group Act.

The simultaneous remote gambling raids netted 33 suspects across thirty physical locations, S$1.3 million in cash, technical hardware and documentation which included betting records.

In further action related to the investigation, authorities froze the suspects’ bank accounts holding a total of S$6.5 million; along with thirty-six properties with a combined estimated value of S$39 million.

The organized criminal group (OCG) is alleged to have run several illegal online lottery and horse race betting operations through networks of agents who facilitated a range of processes from betting to technical support. The OCG is thought to have received bets of over S$2 million in the past month alone, Police authorities said.

“The Organised Crime Act was enacted to strengthen the ability of law enforcement agencies to prevent and disrupt the activities of OCGs,” Deputy Commissioner of Singapore Police, Tan Chye Hee, said. “OCGs are involved in serious criminal activities such as unlawful remote gambling and can pose a serious threat to Singapore’s safety and security.”

The new Organised Crime Act can impose a S$100,000 fine and a jail term of up to five years, while the Remote Gambling Act of 2014 carries fines of between S$20,000 and S$500,000 with a maximum jail term of seven years.

In related news, the Vietnam Ministry of Public Security’s Police Investigation Department of Social Security Crime arrested over 130 people suspected of being involved in an online gambling ring following a month-long investigation.

The raids were carried out on an apartment block across four apartments in HoChiMinh City where media outlets report “hundreds of people were caught placing online bets on football and cockfighting”.

According to Vietnam News, 80 motorbikes and several documents were also seized during the raids.