2008-07-10 22:07 Hong Kong Police have taken part in a joint operation code-named "SOGA" and led by Interpol in May and June this year to crack down on illegal soccer bookmaking activities in Asia. The operation was conducted between May 1 and June 30 this year. Law enforcement authorities from the participating Asian countries/special administrative regions, namely China, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia, detected 1 088 illegal soccer bookmaking cases and arrested 1 316 people, resulting in the seizure of betting slips worth US$1.457 billion and US$16 million in cash. In Hong Kong, Police detected 75 illegal soccer bookmaking cases, arrested 87 people and seized betting slips over HK$ 100 million. In June, Hong Kong Police and their Shenzhen counterparts neutralized two cross-boundary illegal soccer bookmaking syndicates headed by Hong Kong residents. Fifteen men and four women were arrested in Hong Kong and Shenzhen and betting slips worth over HK$30 million were seized. Hong Kong Police have joined forces with Asian countries to stamp out illegal bookmaking activities in the region. The move is in response to the growing concern of transnational syndicated soccer gambling activities in Asia. Interpol instigated the cross-regional operation, code-named "SOGA" between October and November, 2007. During the operation last year, law enforcement authorities from the participating Asian countries and special administrative regions, namely China, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, detected 266 illegal soccer bookmaking cases, arrested 423 people and seized betting slips worth US$680 million as well as US$680,000 in cash. The success of the 2007 operation had led to the second part of the operation this year. Hong Kong Police had maintained close liaison with their counterparts through special channels established for intelligence exchange with a view to cracking down on illegal soccer bookmaking activities via the Internet. The operation had set up a platform for conducting efficient joint operations among the participating countries and regions and strengthened mutual understanding, co-operation and intelligence exchange between the law enforcement authorities. They also pledged to continue to hold seminars to discuss the mounting of similar joint operations in future in order to fight against different kinds of transnational organized crimes. |