It often seems like something that can only happen in the movies or in a book, but large, organised illegal gambling rings are very much a part of modern history, and there have been groups so large that they have impacted the gambling industry as a whole.
These illegal gambling rings were extremely well-organised and went to great lengths not to just secure their money, but to try and keep any evidence out of the hands of authorities. With that in mind, these are some of the most famous illegal gambling rings in the world.
The Gateway Organisation
Based in the US state of South Carolina, The Gateway Organisation is often called one of the biggest gambling busts of all time, and for good reason. Two men were arrested in 2013 with charges of money laundering as well as illegal gambling. Even though there were only two men involved, it turned out that they were able to accumulate around $400 million in total from their activities.
The FBI were able to claim seize bank accounts, computers, as well as gambling machines, but the men also had sports cars and a plane under their name by the time that they were captured. They were forced to give up $20 million each but were only in prison for around a year.
Costa Rica
This gambling ring was set up by four men that were from Costa Rica, and it occurred during the NFL season of 2015, which was one of the most profitable on record. The men had been using popular gambling sites to run their operation and had taken out $1 billion worth of wagers over the course of the season.
To try and launder this huge amount of money, the men decided to purchase more than 20 houses around Costa Rica. The district attorney that was assigned to the case said that it has been the largest operation that was ever dismantled by a prosecutor, and by the time it was over, the men were sentenced to 25 years in prison.
The Macau World Cup
For the most part, these kind of operations tend to take place in regions where betting, such as that found on https://onlineslotsca.net, is legal and open to the people, but this case is different due to the fact that it took place in Macau, a part of China. Over the duration of the operation, it’s estimated that they were able to handle more than $600 million in wagers, which took place while the 2014 World Cup was happening.
Some of the individual bets that were taken out were as high as $5 million. By the time that they were caught, 22 had been arrested in the three hotel rooms they were staying out, where they used their phones and the internet to make their wagers. It also so happens that authorities found another illegal gambling ring in the same hotel just hours later, although the two parties were no affiliated.