Mumbai: Illegal lottery centres busted, 16 held

The Mumbai Police Crime Branch on Wednesday conducted raids on four illegal lottery and betting centers, arresting sixteen accused and seizing cash and other evidence.

According to Crime Branch officials, the raids were conducted by Unit VII based on a tip-off about their illegal activities. Unit VII teams raided the four shops, named Canasta – Skill Game, Balaji Win Game, G-C Online Lottery, and Play 2 Win, all of them located in the Ghatkopar area. Officers said that all of the shops were operating without valid licenses.

“The software used in their computers for conducting lotteries is illegal and manipulated. In this system, winners are declared every 15 minutes, and no tax is paid to any authorities on the winnings. Further, most of the results are tweaked in a way that only the owners profit from the operation,” said a Crime Branch officer.

The officer added that the manipulated software ensures that the numbers on which the customers place their bets never show up as the winning list.

The police have seized Rs 67,810 in cash in the raids, along with five mobile phones, four computers, and five monitors, along with printers, keyboards, Wi-Fi routers, and online lottery result charts. Among the conducted arrests, three owners are still absconding - for which a manhunt has been launched by the police.

The accused have been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, Lottery Regulation Act, and Gambling Act and handed over to the Pant Nagar police station for further inquiries, officers said.