Women falling into gambling - alarming reality

Many gambling dens led by women were discovered.

Truong Vinh Ward Police have just successfully broken up a group of Phom card gambling gangs led by Nguyen Thi Phuong (born in 1976, residing in Hai Loc Commune, Nghe An Province), arresting 8 related subjects. Through the work of grasping the situation, the crime prevention team noticed that the Dang Van Ngu Street area (in the old Hung Dung Ward) often had many strange subjects gathering, showing signs of suspicion about gambling activities.

This group operates very sophisticatedly, arranging lookouts, organizing pick-up and drop-off for gamblers, and frequently changing locations in solid houses with "tiger cages", equipped with surveillance cameras to deal with the authorities. In particular, strictly controlling members by only allowing acquaintances to participate and confiscating phones to avoid detection also shows the professionalism in the organization.

After a period of investigation, at about 4:00 p.m. on August 13, 2025, Truong Vinh Ward Police mobilized the maximum force to divide into many groups to simultaneously raid and caught Nguyen Thi Phuong and 8 subjects gambling. At the scene, the police seized 30 million VND, 9 mobile phones and many related exhibits. At the investigation agency, the subjects admitted their illegal acts. The case is currently being handled in accordance with the law.

Previously, in late February and early March 2025, the Criminal Police Department, Nghe An Provincial Police coordinated to destroy two large gambling rings in Vinh City (old). One group was led by Le Thi Hang (born in 1978, residing in Vinh Tan Ward, now Truong Vinh Ward). Ms. Hang organized "3-card" gambling, collected "cash" from gamblers and carefully arranged people to keep watch. In total, the police arrested 22 subjects, including four women, seized more than VND 700 million, two cars and many exhibits serving gambling activities.

At the end of December 2024, Hoang Mai Town Police (now Hoang Mai Ward Police) dismantled a large-scale lottery and betting ring, with a total transaction amount since the beginning of the year reaching 150 billion VND. The ring operated tightly, had many "henchmen" inside and outside the locality, used sophisticated tricks, and was ready to destroy documents to avoid detection. Among the ringleaders was Pham Thi Xuan (born in 1975, residing in Hoang Mai Ward). After many months of investigation, the police mobilized 17 working groups, arrested 23 subjects, seized evidence, phones and determined that the transaction amount in one day reached more than 600 million VND.

Strengthen inspection and strict handling

This is a significant number and shows the widespread extent of this social evil in the community. In particular, women participating in gambling is no longer an isolated case but appears more and more, with the role of organizing and operating the network, regardless of the law, regardless of the role and honor in the family.

One of the notable cases was the appeal hearing on August 8, 2025 of the People's Court of Nghe An province, which tried Nguyen Thi Oanh (42 years old) and Nguyen Thi Hoa (52 years old), both residing in Hoang Mai ward. Oanh was identified as the leader of a lottery betting ring, operating sophisticatedly via Zalo, Facebook and text messages.

In just 2 days (July 9 and 10, 2024), Oanh's line transacted more than 180 million VND, of which Hoa participated in nearly 70 million VND. In addition, both were accused of participating in gambling with an amount of more than 7 million VND. The court of first instance sentenced Oanh to 3 years and 3 months in prison, Hoa to 12 months in prison. At the appeal hearing, after considering mitigating circumstances, the court decided to give Hoa a suspended sentence, while Oanh must serve 3 years in prison.

Behind the seemingly dry numbers in the indictments are tearful stories. When a woman, who is the keeper of the fire in the family, becomes a gambler, the consequences are not small. NVĐ. (living in Vinh Hung ward) shared: “Since I was little, I have been familiar with the image of my mother sitting all night at the gambling table. Many times my mother lost everything, borrowed money everywhere, then argued with my father, and broke things. I felt ashamed in front of my friends, my studies declined, and I wanted to drop out of school. Now, when my mother was arrested, I am sad but also relieved. I just hope my mother will repent and start over…”.

The story of D. is just one of many pitiful situations that result from the gambling problem involving women. According to sociologists, this is not only a violation of the law, but also a manifestation of the breakdown in consciousness, lifestyle and family values.

Some of the reasons pointed out include prolonged idleness, lack of life orientation, or the mentality of wanting to “get rich quick” without working. Many women have economic conditions, even education, but still fall into gambling as a form of entertainment and the pursuit of material benefits. When they win, they are caught up in the cycle of gambling. When they lose, they borrow, get into debt, hide, and even assist criminals.

In the long run, a gambling mother not only destroys family happiness but also negatively impacts the personality formation of her children. Children in such an environment are easily disoriented, even seeing gambling as normal behavior. In many cases, the next generation continues to slide down the same path that their parents have gone through.

Faced with this situation, local socio-political organizations, especially women's associations, need to promote their role in propaganda and mobilization of members, union members and people to raise their legal awareness, maintain moral qualities, build cultural families, and not indulge in violations such as gambling and lottery. Violations can be brought to mobile trials in residential areas to increase deterrence and education.

In the context of gambling activities becoming increasingly sophisticated, shifting to online, anonymous and difficult-to-detect forms, the People's Committee of Nghe An province has strongly directed all levels and sectors to strengthen inspection, detection and strict handling of acts of organizing and participating in gambling. Implementing Directive 16/TTg of the Prime Minister, the province has issued Directive 17/CT-UBND and many specific directives to promote the prevention and combat of high-tech crimes, including gambling, betting and lottery via the Internet.

Departments, sectors and police forces are required to launch high-profile campaigns to attack and suppress crime; resolutely eradicate gambling networks, gangs and dens. At the same time, improve the efficiency of receiving and handling crime reports, thoroughly handle and publicize the results of investigations and prosecutions for general deterrence.

The authorities have also stepped up propaganda on media and social networks to warn people not to participate in disguised reward exchange applications and platforms, prediction games, especially online gambling websites disguised as entertainment. When people detect suspicious signs, they should immediately report to the nearest police for timely handling.

At the same time, he emphasized that preventing and combating gambling crimes is not only the task of the authorities but also the responsibility of the whole community. Each citizen should become the "eyes and ears" of the government, contributing to protecting the peace of the village and hamlet, and maintaining a healthy and civilized lifestyle in each family.