Ukraine's gambling regulator head detained over suspected ties to Russia

The war in Ukraine has taken an unexpected turn, as the head of the nation’s gambling watchdog, Ivan Rudyi, was detained last week on charges that he had aided an online casino tied to Russia.

Rudyi was detained on December 18 and is accused of "supporting" the operations of an online casino tied to Russian citizens that have operated in Ukraine and have potentially contributed to the "Special Military Operation," Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine’s gambling head in hot water over alleged support of Russian casino

President Volodymyr Zelensky has reiterated throughout the past two years that online casinos hosted by Russia were targeting Ukrainians in order to fund Russia’s war against the nation, and many brands were targeted by a presidential decree, including upstanding companies that were caught in the cross-fire.

The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) has collected sufficient evidence to detain Rudyi, a former military serviceman, who was appointed as the country’s first gambling regulator since October 2020, after the re-regulation of the industry in Ukraine. The SBI released a statement in which it said:

"SBI officers detained the head of the Commission on suspicion of aiding the aggressor state and the illegal possession of large quantities of narcotics without intent to sell (Articles 111-2 and 309 of Ukraine's Criminal Code)."

Rudyi’s supposed transgressions are not clearly borne out just yet, but the SBI believes that he intentionally refrained from revoking the license of a gambling company that is suspected to be owned by Russian citizens.

According to investigators, Rudyi was aware that the activities of the online casino in question were a threat to national security, and there were numerous issues raised with the website.

Russian citizens tied to online casino operations wanted

However, the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries failed to act under his stewardship, resulting in his detention.

The website, which has now been supposedly restricted in Ukraine, continues to operate in Russia, however. The owners of the casino and the website’s domain name are also wanted and charged under the country’s 111-2 Criminal Code.

The SBI has also been able to freeze some of the casino’s funds and is presently seizing them from the website. The sum is nothing to sneeze at, as an estimated $61.9m (UAH2.6bn) will be transferred from the online casino’s accounts back to Ukraine.

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