The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) disclosed recently that raids have led to the detainment of twelve individuals associated with illicit online gambling operations. The regulator in the Philippines stated that the action was executed on February 16 within the area of Parañaque City.
The operation resulting in the detention of 12 individuals was spearheaded by the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), the Anti Cybercrime Group of the Philippine National Police (PNP), as well as the PAGCOR monitoring group.
Alejandro Tengco, the CEO and chair of PAGCOR, offered his viewpoint on these developments. He indicated that authorities discovered a gambling den and apprehended suspects directly engaged in running the unlawful gambling platform known as The Big Bet (tbb888.com). Tengco elaborated that The Big Bet was offering illegal gambling services, which included the likes of slot machines, live casino products and esports bets, among several others.
Besides the detention of a dozen individuals, the law enforcement seized eleven computer systems, twenty one mobile devices, a couple of iPads, five laptops and a range of flash drives during the raid.
PAGCOR’s Ambition to Eradicate Illicit Rivals
As per the revelations from PAGCOR’s senior vice president for security and monitoring cluster, Raul Villanueva, the apprehended devices served as concrete proof of the group’s involvement in unlawful online gambling activities. Villanueva also confirmed that legal proceedings will be initiated against the apprehended individuals in the Parañaque Regional Trial Court.
Villanueva further clarified that the operation reflects the collective endeavor of the Philippine authorities towards eliminating illegal gambling activities. The regulator pledges its commitment to persistently collaborate with law enforcement bodies such as the PNP and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency to cease such operations.
We have also aligned our efforts with the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center under the Department of Information and Communications Technology as we have numerous more targets under watchful eyes.
Raul Villanueva, senior vice president for security and monitoring cluster, PAGCOR
Villanueva further urged the public to refrain from indulging in and investing money on these illegal platforms. He highlighted that, unfortunately, the majority of victims of such illicit sites are Philippine bettors. He stressed the importance of ongoing surveillance and reporting to safeguard bettors and ensure that revenues from regulated gaming are redirected back to the government coffers.
The SVP rounded off his address by mentioning that there were previously about 5,000 illicit online gaming websites active in the Philippines. However, the majority of such sites have been successfully blocked, he reassured.
