How was the online gambling ring in Nghe An and Ha Tinh dismantled?
(Baonghean.vn) - Thai Hoa Town Police determined that this online gambling ring via the internet is similar in nature to the Rikvip online gambling ring of "boss" Phan Sao Nam that Phu Tho Province Police had eradicated.
Network across provinces and cities
Since mid-September 2018, Thai Hoa Town Police discovered that a number of online games were appearing in the area, mainly online card games with rewards from virtual money to real money and vice versa, attracting a lot of players. This is a form of entertainment game but in essence it is an online card game for gamblers to gamble with each other.
Among the card games that are operating illegally, in Thai Hoa town, the game application that is played the most is "exploding jars". This is an online card game application, which includes many games simulating forms of gambling such as Sic Bo, Slots, Poker...
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| Thai Hoa Town Police deployed a plan to destroy an online gambling ring via the internet. Photo: PB |
After winning or losing, gamblers can convert “explosions” into real money by selling them to agents. To attract gamblers to deposit money to play, the subjects in the network set up a multi-level agent system nationwide, transactions are carried out in cash or through banks.
After a long period of persistent monitoring, Thai Hoa Town Police identified the second-level agent who organized for gamblers to play in Thai Hoa Town as Phan Duc Ha (born in 1974, residing in Quang Thinh block, Quang Tien ward). From there, Thai Hoa Town Police established Project 108D to fight.
Following Phan Duc Ha's connections, the police discovered that Le Thinh Vuong (born in 1988, residing in block 250, Quang Tien ward, Thai Hoa town) was a level 2 agent in Thai Hoa town and Nghia Dan area.
Continuing to verify, the Investigation Committee discovered that Truong Van Anh Dung (born 2000, with permanent residence in Thai Hoa Town, but temporarily residing in Vinh City), regularly operates in Vinh City and is a level 2 agent of this money-making card game in the Vinh City area.
Nghe An: Eliminated online gambling ring worth billions of dong every day
(Baonghean.vn) - These subjects operate in inter-provincial networks, establishing level 1 and level 2 agencies, attracting hundreds of participants every day with billions of dong in revenue.
From the above subjects, the Investigation Committee identified the first-level agent in Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces as Le Hong Thoa (born in 1989, residing in Ha Huy Tap ward, Vinh city).
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| 6 out of 8 subjects were prosecuted and temporarily detained in the project. Photo: PB |
One day at the end of April 2019, seeing the opportunity was ripe, the Task Force divided into 4 groups and simultaneously arrested Phan Duc Ha, Le Thinh Vuong, Truong Van Anh Dung and Le Hong Thoa.
Through the fight with the subjects, the Task Force arrested another subject who is a level 2 agent in Quang Binh province, Ngo Thai Duong (born 2000, residing in Nam Trach commune, Bo Trach district, Quang Binh).
Le Hong Thoa (level 1 agent) confessed that he had colluded with subjects who managed and illegally released an online card game application called "no hu" to open an online game money general agency in Nghe An - Ha Tinh, using the name "Le Thoa", and the agent's account name was "muaban37" to carry out the acts of buying, selling and converting virtual money for gamblers.
At the same time, Thoa directly opened an agency at 59 Nguyen Nang Tinh (Vinh City), setting up accounts at many different banks to easily transact with gamblers.
After knowing that Thoa was a level 1 agent, Phan Duc Ha, Le Thinh Vuong, Truong Van Anh Dung and Ngo Thai Duong acted as level 2 agents for Thoa to share illegal profits.
Open workshop, exchange experiences
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| The "exploding jar" game page where the subjects participate in playing, but is actually a disguised gambling. Screenshot |
It is known that when gamblers want to play the "exploding jar" game, virtual currency transactions will be carried out in two forms, either direct transactions or bank transfers.
If in person, the gambler would meet one of the subjects Ha, Vuong, Dung or Duong to give real money, then these subjects would text Le Hong Thoa's phone number to transfer virtual money.
For the form of transfer via banks, the subjects will provide bank account numbers with names and then Thoa will transfer virtual money from the account "muaban37" to the game account for the gamblers. When the gambler wins a big bet and wants to convert virtual money into real money, it is also done in a similar way.
The conversion rate is that if you buy 1,000,000 "explosions", you have to pay 850,000 VND in real money and vice versa, when you win the bet and want to exchange 1,000,000 "explosions" for real money, you will only be paid the corresponding amount of 800,000 VND.
All these transactions are carried out very sophisticatedly, through computers or smart mobile phones under the general management and direction of Le Hong Thoa.
Through verification at banks with Phan Duc Ha's account, the police identified the identities, addresses, and phone numbers of nearly 100 accounts nationwide that participated in money transfers for gambling, with the minimum amount of each account being 5 million VND. On average, about 100 transactions were made each day.
To expand the scale and promote the game brand, the general agents also regularly organize seminars and exchange experiences on a national scale. Therefore, this form has attracted millions of gamblers nationwide to participate. On average, every minute, there are hundreds of gamblers participating with transaction amounts up to hundreds of millions of dong.
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| Evidence seized by the police from the suspects. Photo: PB |
Expanding the investigation, the Investigation Team determined that this internet gambling ring in many other provinces and cities across the country had about 23 level 1 agents operating. Thereby, they arrested Tran Le Dinh (born in 1993, residing in Viet Quang town, Bac Quang district, Ha Giang). Dinh is a level 2 agent of Le Hong Thoa operating in Ha Giang province.
The Thai Hoa City Police Department has initiated a case, prosecuted and temporarily detained 8 subjects who are level 1 and level 2 agents and summoned and handled nearly 40 other related subjects. Initially, it was determined and proven that the amount of money that this line used to convert virtual money into real money and vice versa was about 10 billion VND.
"The Investigation Police Agency determined that in addition to Le Hong Thoa, in many provinces and cities across the country there are about 23 other level 1 agents of this gambling ring. However, it is difficult to identify higher levels because the subjects only transact through banks and the virtual world, not meeting in person, so the Investigation Committee has not had the conditions to expand, in order to eradicate the root cause of this "huge" online gambling ring."