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The imminent threat of online gambling looms large. While some individuals remain unperturbed, the reality is that over 100 crores of taka are being laundered every day through this illicit activity. Compounding the issue is the fact that the immensely popular Indian Premier League (IPL) has become a focal point for online gambling across the nation.
According to sources, cricket gambling has become the talk of the town in Bangladesh. What started with cricket gambling has now extended to manual casino gambling, spreading from urban centers to rural areas. Some refer to it as cricket gambling, while others simply call it betting. This form of gambling or betting takes place during various cricket tournaments, including the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), Indian Premier League (IPL), World Cup, One Day Internationals (ODIs), as well as domestic and international test matches.
Individuals from diverse backgrounds, including school and college students, youths, businessmen, and even daily wage earners, are involved in this activity. Sadly, many who struggle to make ends meet fall into the trap of gambling and end up losing their hard-earned savings. Moreover, the influence of gambling is leading astray the younger generation of students in schools and colleges. With the IPL currently underway, the prevalence of gambling is particularly pronounced during this period.
Cricket gambling takes various forms, encompassing a wide range of bets. These include predicting the outcome of matches, such as which team will win or lose, as well as more specific events within the game, such as the number of runs scored in the next ball, whether a batsman will be out in the next over, or how many wickets a bowler will take. Additionally, bets are placed on individual player performances, such as the number of runs a batsman will score or how many wickets a particular bowler will take.
Furthermore, betting extends to broader aspects of the game, such as predicting the total runs a team will score or how many wickets a team will lose. Even seemingly trivial details like the margin of victory are subject to betting.
In this betting or gambling scenario, wagers typically revolve around the outcome of matches between two teams. The betting rates are determined based on the perceived strength of each team. For instance, if Australia is playing against Bangladesh, Australia might have a betting rate of 2, while Bangladesh might have a betting rate of 1. This means that if someone bets on Australia (the stronger team) and wins, they would receive Tk 2000 for every Tk 1000 they wagered. Conversely, if they bet on Bangladesh (the weaker team) and win, they would receive more than Tk 2000 for every Tk 1000 wagered.
In practical terms, to place a bet on the stronger team (Australia in this case), one would need to wager at least Tk 2000, while for the weaker team (Bangladesh), a bettor could wager as little as Tk 1000. The odds are expressed as 1:2 for Bangladesh and 2:1 for Australia. However, it's important to note that these rates often fluctuate. While local bookies may offer odds like 2:3, 3:2, or 3:5, such variations are rare internationally.
Interestingly, many gamblers tend to bet on the weaker team, as the initial investment is lower and the potential profit is higher.
Millions of individuals are currently grappling with addiction to online casinos, with Mega Casino World emerging as the most prevalent platform. Through these online casinos, staggering amounts of money are illicitly siphoned out of the country. Alarmingly, certain mobile banking institutions within the country are complicit in facilitating this smuggling operation.
According to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), online gambling is wreaking havoc, with over a hundred crore taka being laundered daily. This illicit money is laundered through the mobile financial system of the country. Various agents are directly implicated in these operations. Betting companies play a pivotal role by establishing payment gateways, thereby facilitating these agents. Consequently, all forms of gambling transactions are conducted through these payment gateways, exacerbating the issue.
In a recent operation, law enforcers have apprehended a gang responsible for smuggling Tk 400 crore. This group, comprising five members, laundered the substantial sum through the mobile financial system over the past few months.
As per the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the modus operandi of this gang involves procuring agent SIM cards from a Bkash Distribution House in Chattogram. These SIM cards are then connected to laptops or computers via modems. Upon establishing the connection, control of the connected SIM cards is transferred to individuals managing the applications. These individuals oversee the operations of this digital hundi from an office located in Dubai.
The mastermind behind this hundi operation is Shahidul Islam, also known as Mamun, who has been residing in Dubai since 2020. Alongside Mamun, five other individuals oversee the operation of the Jet Robotic apps from Dubai. These apps are tailored and managed by software developers based in Malaysia. With this setup, Mamun and his associates can remotely control the agent SIM cards in Bangladesh from Dubai. They execute transactions by transferring money through cash-in to various numbers within Bangladesh.
Initial investigations indicate that from January to March of this year, this hundi syndicate has successfully smuggled approximately 400 crore taka.
CID chief Mohammad Ali informed the reporters that comprehensive measures have been devised in collaboration with all stakeholders to address this case. It has been decided to shut down the gateway at the initial stage, followed by the closure of these apps in Bangladesh through the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC). Additionally, stringent operations are underway against the agents involved in laundering the money.
Messenger/Fameema
