Thailand Cops Arrest 3,771 over World Cup Gambling

Thailand CopsArrest 3,771 over World Cup Gambling

Thailand CopsArrest 3,771 over World Cup GamblingThe World Cup has been everything it’s been hyped up to be. Unfortunately, that also applies to pre-tournament fears of betting crackdowns all over the world, especially in Asia.

Thailand has been rife with these cases. According to the Bangkok Post, World Cup fever has also coincided with some of the biggest gambling busts for any single sporting event.

Deputy Police Chief AekAngsananont told the newspaper that 3,771 people have been arrested for having involvement on illegal World Cup gambling. The arrests began on June 9, a few days before the tournament started. As of July 3, law enforcement officials in Thailand have taken down 3,412 gamblers, 236 bankers and 110 bet brokers.

In that time, the police have also seized around 1.9 million baht ($58,600) in cash while reporting bets made in excess of 28 million baht ($864,000).

Over the course of the crackdown, the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology were made aware of 1,791 football gambling websites operating in the country. Of that number, 1,227 sites were closed.

The World Cup is scheduled to conclude over the weekend but Angsananonthas has already gone on record saying the crackdown will continue, with special attention being paid to illegal gambling on club football leagues all over the world.