PADAWAN: Police here arrested three locals for allegedly operating an illegal online gambling call centre in an apartment last Friday (Sept 24).
A team of personnel from Sarawak Police Contingent Headquarters (IPK) and the district’s police headquarters raided the premises at Jalan Stapok Utama around 10.05pm.
District police chief Supt Aidil Bolhassan, who confirmed the case, said the team detained three men, aged 20, 21 and 24 years, in the middle of their operation.
Also seized in the raid were a full set computer, three phones and an Internet router.
“Investigations found that the centre has been operating for the past three months and was reaping profits of about RM1,500 per day and RM45,000 per month.
“The operators received a monthly salary of RM1,500 each and worked on a 24-hour basis with shifts in the living room of the apartment,” said Aidil.
On their modus operandi, he said these operators used their phones to promote six identified gambling websites to customers.
Aidil added that the customers had to transfer money into several bank accounts belonging to the syndicate if they wanted to access the websites.
The operators would then inform their customers via text, Whatsapp or Telegram of their IDs and passwords to access the online gambling websites.
The police chief added that the case would be investigated under Section 4(1)(g) of the Common Gaming House Act 1953.
