Illegal gambling ring launders money via two Thai companies

• An investigation resulted in the arrest of the owners of two registered companies
• The companies, according to police, were used for money laundering of proceeds obtained from illegal gambling
• The two suspects are facing serious crimes for their alleged involvement

Two people are facing tough charges in Thailand after an operation against illegal gambling.

Both suspects are owners of registered companies that allegedly operated solely to launder money from illegal gambling.

Millions of baht were laundered, police say

As announced in a report from the Bangkok Post, the latest operation follows an investigation by the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau.

Law enforcement reportedly looked into the illegal gambling network "lalikabet168e," uncovering two companies that were used for money laundering.

Police suspect that more than 100m baht ($3.2m) from illegal gambling was laundered through the two registered companies.

As a result, law enforcement obtained warrants for the arrest of the owners of the two businesses.

Considering that the two suspects were arrested only recently, now, police have expanded their investigation and further arrests may be announced at a later time.

The owners of the two companies face a number of charges, including gaming-related offenses such as organizing or promoting illegal gambling.

They are also charged with advertising directly or indirectly illegal gambling and encouraging others to engage in illegal gambling.

Not unexpectedly, the list of charges includes serious offenses for money laundering, as well as conspiring to commit money laundering.

Police are still investigating the case, so it is yet to be confirmed what was the involvement of the two business owners in the illegal gambling network.

After a raid by law enforcement, a 43-year-old man, who owns one of the companies used as a front to launder illegal gambling proceeds, was arrested.

Later on, a 27-year-old, who is the owner of the second company that was allegedly used for money laundering, turned himself in to the police.

Law enforcement did not confirm whether the illegal gambling ring operated locally or targeted nearby markets across Asia.

Image credit: Pixabay.com