Online casino network liquidated in Kazakhstan, over 400 people detained

Over 400 people were detained in a joint operation conducted by the Internal Affairs Ministry and the National Security Committee of Kazakhstan, the ministry said, Report informs via Kazakh media.

“The Ministry of Internal Affairs, together with the National Security Committee, with the coordination of the Prosecutor General's Office, liquidated the largest network of illegal online casinos operating under the guise of lottery clubs,” the ministry said.

More than 3,000 employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the National Security Committee were involved in one of the largest special operations.

“Security guards and administrators organized intimate services for VIP clients. Facts about pimping and drug use were also recorded. During the special operation, over 400 people were brought to the police. Eight main organizers of the criminal scheme were detained, including citizens of foreign countries,” said the head of the Department for Combating Organized Crime Kuandyk Alpys.

Across the country, 570 searches were carried out on the premises and offices of lotto clubs. Twenty-three units of firearms and traumatic weapons, 247 million tenge cash ($547,300), 55 million rubles ($624,000), $125,000, computer equipment and mobile devices were seized.

“As a result, the activities of 326 lotto clubs were suppressed. Servers through which online casinos were broadcast from abroad in Kazakhstan were detected and blocked,” said a representative of the Internal Ministry.