SINGAPORE: A 66-year-old man in Singapore has admitted to running an illegal online gambling operation, earning around S$1.28 million (RM 4.72 million) over a five-year period, despite claiming to be “computer illiterate.”
Shunmugam Mogan started illegal activities in early 2015 after he obtained accounts on gambling websites through a contact known only as Samm, as reported by Singapore news portal, Today Online.
Between February 2015 and September 2020, he accepted bets on Singapore Pools’ 4D, Toto, and football games, involving at least seven punters and recruiting 20 agents to collect and place the illegal bets.
Although he did not personally manage the online accounts, his girlfriend, Rabiah Kamarrudin, oversaw them, while his son-in-law and others acted as agents within the organised crime group.
Court documents show that during this period, Shunmugam and his agents collected between S$18,000 (RM 60,000) and S$30,000 (RM 100,000) weekly in 4D bets, totalling at least S$1.08 million (RM 3.6 million).
He earned about S$5,000 (RM16,677) in weekly profits, accumulating S$1.28 million by the time his operation ended.
Shunmugam, currently out on bail, pleaded guilty on September 4 to charges of operating a remote gambling service, being part of an organised crime group, and instructing others to commit related offences while Rabiah, for her involvement, was sentenced to 31 months in jail and fined S$192,000 (RM 640, 407).
In Singapore, running an illegal gambling service carries penalties of up to seven years in jail or a fine between S$20,000 (RM 66,705) and S$500,000 (RM 1.67 million).
