Police bust illegal soccer betting syndicate
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Police arrested 10 people for suspected involvement in an illegal soccer betting syndicate yesterday afternoon.
The 10, all males, aged between 27 and 43 years were arrested in raids on premises islandwide including Yishun, Ang Mo Kio, Bishan and Senoko, following investigations by the Criminal Investigations Department.
The 10 represented all rungs of the syndicate, from the illegal bookies to their punters.
Cash amounting to more than $114, 000, desktop computers, laptops, thumb drives, ATM cards, handphones and suspected betting records were seized.
Preliminary investigations revealed that members of the syndicate placed soccer bets online and used bank transfer facilities for payment.
All 10 have been released on bail pending further investigations.
Persons found guilty of acting as a bookmaker or permitting a place to be used as a common betting house face a fine of not less than $20,000 and up to $200,000 and also imprisonment for up to 5 years.
Persons found guilty of betting with illegal bookmakers face a fine of up to $5,000 or imprisonment for up to 6 months or both.
--938Live