Kuala Lumpur police arrest 1,156 individuals in 868 raids targeting illegal gambling and World Cup betting since January.
KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur police arrested 1,156 individuals suspected of involvement in illegal gambling and scam activities during 868 raids across the federal capital from Jan 1 to June 23 this year.
Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Fadil Marsus (pic) said that, of the total, 24 individuals were detained in 22 raids under Op Soga IV, which targeted World Cup 2026 football bookmaking. Various electronic devices were seized. Investigations are being carried out under the Betting Act 1953, the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 and the Immigration Act 1959.
“Apart from that, police conducted 486 raids on illegal public lottery activities, leading to 487 arrests and the seizure of RM4,886 in cash and 451 mobile phones,” he said in a statement today.
Fadil said another 341 individuals were detained following 322 raids on online gambling activities, with seizures including tablet computers, mobile phones, and internet networking equipment.
Police also raided 21 premises suspected of operating as call centres for illegal syndicates. A total of 152 individuals were arrested, and police seized 58 computers and 77 laptops.
He said department personnel also detained 146 individuals in 16 raids related to indoor gambling activities, with RM10,842 in cash, thousands of chips, and mahjong tiles seized. Another six individuals were arrested in a raid involving outdoor gambling activities, with cash and playing card sets seized.
“Overall, this integrated operation recorded total cash seizures of RM45,033, betting values amounting to RM96,878.58, and HK$32,799.75 in Hong Kong currency,” he said.
