Indonesian police detained 39 Indian nationals for running a major online gambling ring in Bali and seized millions in monthly revenue.
Bali: Indonesian police have arrested dozens of Indian nationals in a major crackdown on an online gambling operation based on the resort island.
Authorities raided two villas on Tuesday, detained 39 Indian nationals and seized phones, laptops and computers, according to Bali police chief Daniel Adityajaya.
Thirty-five suspects have been charged with gambling-related offences, while four others remain under investigation.
The suspects had allegedly entered Indonesia on tourist visas and had been promoting and managing transactions for an online gambling site since late last year.
Police said the operation generated revenue of Rs 8 billion, or about $475,000, every month.
“Preliminary investigation shows that they opened and operated an office in Bali to take advantage of Bali’s status as an international tourist destination to avoid suspicion,” Adityajaya said.
The suspects face charges including organizing gambling activities, which carries a prison sentence of up to nine years under Indonesia’s new penal code.
Gambling is illegal in the Muslim-majority Indonesian archipelago, with laws targeting bookmakers, bookmakers and online promoters.
Official data indicates the scale of the illegal industry, with turnover linked to online gambling exceeding Rs 280 trillion last year.
An estimated 12 million Indonesians are engaged in online gambling activity.
