Police Take Down Gambling Network With Transactions Worth US$375,800,000

In a crackdown on a major online gambling network involving 13 locations in Bangkok and Chiang Rai province in northern Thailand, police arrested five people and seized valuables, cash, and bank books.

Seven luxury cars, 42 luxury wristwatches, 45 brand name bags, collectible dolls, three million baht in cash, and 166 bank books were seized.

According to the Bangkok Post, the network operated around the clock and openly advertised gambling on social media, particularly during the 2022 World Cup.

Police stated that those wishing to bet online must deposit funds into the bank accounts of the gambling operator’s nominees. The money would then be withdrawn and sent to the network operator by the nominees. The suspect took money from bank accounts opened by people hired by the gang.

Police arrested suspects in Chiang Rai’s Mae Sai district, identified only as Kittikorn, Rung-arun, and Thongthai, for opening bank accounts for the gang.

Investigators discovered financial transactions totaling more than 3 billion baht (US$ 375,800,000) that was linked to the online gambling network. The detectives intended to track down the true owners of the gambling sites later.

According to Police Gen Torsak Sukvimol, the deputy national police chief, this online gambling network has been in operation for more than five years.

Police said the money was used to buy land worth over 600 million baht and to invest in the stock market.

Since the start of the World Cup, police have arrested 10,644 gamblers, including approximately 9,000 football bettors.

In Thailand, most forms of gambling are still illegal.

Whether you agree with it or not, betting and gambling dens have been common in much of Thailand for a long time, despite government efforts to eradicate them.

Thais enjoy playing cards and betting on sports, particularly football and cockfighting, despite the fact that gambling is currently illegal in Thailand.

Casinos in the Cambodian border town of Poipet are frequently staffed by Thai nationals and are always packed with Thai customers.

For the past two decades, the Thai government has been toying with the idea of legalizing gambling in the country. The plan, however, has been repeatedly thwarted by arguments that gambling is incompatible with Buddhist principles and will encourage more illegal behaviour.

While Thailand’s neighbours, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Singapore, have legalized gambling and built casino complexes to attract tourists and boost their economies, Thailand has maintained its Gambling Act (1935), which prohibits all forms of cash betting except the state lottery and horse races at state-licensed racetracks.

Proposals to legalize casinos were debated in parliament in late June, in an effort to revitalize the pandemic-ravaged economy following the government’s successful decriminalization of cannabis that same month. Casino legalization would aim to increase revenue, collect taxes from complexes, and crack down on illegal venues, slot machines, and online gambling.

Thailand could accommodate five casinos, one in each of its five regions, according to a House committee studying the feasibility of opening such entertainment complexes.

The casino could be located in Chiang Rai or Chiang Mai in the north. Pattaya is the target location in the central region.

Phuket, Phangnga, and Krabi were suggested as ideal locations in the south. Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, and Khon Kaen are the options in the Northeast. Bangkok or one of its neighbouring provinces is the ideal location.

According to the House committee, if approved, the proposal could help Thailand generate billions of dollars from foreign investors, tourists, and Thai gamblers.

The committee believes that this target market would otherwise spend their money on gambling in neighbouring countries, and that Thai legalization would also help to reduce illegal gambling and other criminal activities.