4 online gambling operators arrested
RAB has arrested 4 members who were operating gambling under the cover of various content online including the owner. They are: Md. Nishat Munna (20), Md. Kamrul Islam Shubo (27), Md. Suman (35) and Md. Nazmul Hossain Babu (31). Among them, the gang leader is a student of electrical engineering at a private university in Dhaka. Under his leadership, 7-8 members of the gang were involved in promoting various online gambling sites in different areas of Bangladesh. They were involved in operating online gambling sites by opening accounts, transacting money through mobile banking and sending money to neighboring countries through hundis.
RAB Legal and Media Wing Director Commander Khandaker Al Moin informed this in a press conference organized at RAB Media Center in Karwan Bazar of the capital on Tuesday (October 24).
He said that the joint team of RAB Headquarters Intelligence Branch and RAB-1 and RAB-11 arrested four members including the mastermind of a gang who had lifted about half a crore taka through the operation of various online gambling sites operated from outside the country based on the World Cup.
According to the information, the mastermind started a YouTube channel named NISHAT MUNNA and a Facebook ID named Nishat Munna (Silent Killer) and used to create and promote various roasting/controversial videos. In early 2022, Nishat Munna became addicted to online gambling after seeing various online gambling advertisements of a group on social media. Nishat was also offered from various online gambling platforms outside the country to make videos for the promotion of online betting sites. For this he was lured to pay 10 thousand taka per video. After that, Nishat got involved in promoting various betting sites and other activities hoping to earn a lot of money. By doing this, he himself started online gambling activities. Nishat Munna was conducting gambling activities on various online sites as a Bangladesh agent for the last one and a half years. Nishat created a gang to create various accounts by luring youths to earn money through online gambling. The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested Nishat Munna, the eight-member gang leader and three of his associates in raids in Gazipur's Sreepur and capital's Malibagh areas on Monday (October 23). During the operation, 16 mobile phones, 18 SIM cards, a CPU, a monitor were recovered from them.
Commander Khandaker Al Moin said, during preliminary interrogation, the arrested accused have admitted their involvement in online gambling. Preliminary investigation revealed that the gang has been involved in running various online gambling sites in Bangladesh for the past one and a half years. Nishat Munna is one of the founders of various online gambling sites operating from outside the country.
He said that the gang used to promote this online gambling mainly targeting the rising youth of the country focusing on Football World Cup, Cricket World Cup, IPL, BPL, various football leagues/tournaments and other sports. Someone in this circle used to open accounts on different sites of people interested in promoting/marketing various foreign betting sites in Bangladesh. Others collect money from the account holder and send it through mobile banking to the operator of the online gambling platform through Hundi.
This RAB official said, they used to promote this gambling site by creating various video content, advertising the gambling site with the content, advertising the betting site in various social media groups, directly telling people. Later, interested people would contact them and open an account through the link sent by them. If any new customer opens an account on the betting site through them, they get a commission. They were involved in the operation of various online gambling sites in the country including 1xBet, MeltBet, Pari Match, Velkiex, Bj Baji Casino, Ludo Match. When various apps and websites related to online gambling or betting were closed by Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission or BTRC earlier, they changed the domain and re-launched gambling on online platforms.
The gang collected multiple SIMs anonymously and collected online gambling money from customers through mobile banking and kept their own dividends from the received money and sent the remaining money to the operator of the online gambling platform in the neighboring country through Hundi. They said they gambled online with their dividend money. They are said to have lifted more than half a crore taka from various people through online gambling.
RAB Commander Khandaker Al Moin said that legal action is being taken against the arrested accused.
