Police in Kaula Lampur, Malaysia swooped down on a massive, illegal online gambling operation earlier this week, arresting 100 Chinese nationals in the process. The raid was a mirror image of recent police operations across Southeast Asia as authorities crack down on Chinese organized crime.
This week’s raid took place in the posh gated community of Mont Kiara, on the outskirts of Kaula Lampur. Along with arresting 83 men and 17 women, all Chinese nationals, authorities seized a massive haul electronics including 23 desktop PCs, 66 laptops, 555 cell phones, 11 modems, and 8 routers. The electronics were used to host an illegal gambling site that targeted customers in Mainland China by offering more than 200 games, along with customer service to support them.
The men and women who worked for the operation lived in a series of bungalows located on the lot and rarely left the confines of the house for any reason. There’s no word on whether the employees were being held against their will or not.
“The syndicate targets victims in China and all transactions, payments are made through WeChat Pay as well as banks there. The number of victims is estimated to be over 1,000 people,” Mohamad Hedzir Hussin, assistant director of the Malaysian federal police’s Secret Societies, Gambling and Vice Division told Benar News.
The online gambling syndicate seemed to be as successful as it was illegal. Hussin went on to say that the arrested enterprise was earning more than $17,000 a day.
All of those arrested are alleged to have overstayed tourist and work visas and face up to five years in prison if convicted on illegal gambling charges.