Football-based gambling ring worth over US$39 million busted

Police operating in the southcentral coastal province of Phu Yen have co-operated with the Department of Cyber Security and Hi-tech Crime Prevention under the Ministry of Public Security and police forces of Quang Ngai province and Lam Dong province to smash a major online football betting ring worth VND1 trillion, equal to US$39.1 million.

According to details from the arrests, on July 11 the police raided a number of locations in these localities to arrest eight suspects, all of whom will be investigated for gambling and organising illegal gambling activities.

The initial investigation into the case shows that the masterminds of the ring were identified as Tran Dinh Thang, 44; and Doan Quoc Hoang, 37; both of whom reside in Tuy Hoa City.

The two suspects supervised betting accounts and managed a gambling network that was spread over many cities and provinces nationwide. The police said that the gambling ring had used the website bong88.com to take bets from gamblers.

By the time it was eventually busted, the ring had received bets worth VND1 trillion, equal to US$39.1 million.

The case is currently under further investigation.

Locally most forms of gambling, including sports betting, are illegal, with some exceptions such as state-run lotteries.