Sports influencer faces charges for promoting online gambling in Thailand

A prominent sports influencer faced criminal charges today over allegations of promoting online gambling on their Facebook page. They confessed, citing high earnings and significant expenses as their reasons. The influencer, a popular figure in the sports industry, was summoned today by the Technology Crime Investigation Bureau (SOT).

They were accused of posting messages encouraging online gambling, which they confessed to. The influencer stated they shared links to what they believed were official foreign club online gambling websites, thinking it was legal.

They posted these links under general news posts on their Facebook page, which has over 160,000 followers. They received monthly compensation between 40,000-50,000 baht.

The influencer began this activity during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, intermittently stopping and starting. They admitted their actions were driven by high income and family expenses, and warned other influencers against violating the law.

Pol. Maj. Gen. Atthasit Sudsanguan, Deputy commander of the Royal Thai Armed Forces said…

“Posting or live streaming to encourage people to gamble is a criminal offence under the Gambling Act. In this case, it may be necessary to conduct further investigations to determine whether the information has had a detrimental effect on the public, which could result in a violation of the Computer Act.”

Expansion of investigation

Moreover, there will be an expansion of the investigation to prosecute the mentioned gambling websites. Police officers have been monitoring gambling websites and are currently working to shut down four websites. However, new gambling websites are continuously being created due to the significant benefits of running such sites.

Therefore, there is a group of people willing to risk committing these offences. Several influencers encourage the public to gamble. The police will be summoning them to face further charges.

He stressed that while online gambling or other forms of gambling may be legal in some countries, it is illegal under Thai law. Even advertising is not allowed, as it is considered as promoting gambling within Thailand.

Also, he warned all influencers that if they deceive the public or encourage gambling, they should cease such activities as they are against the law in Thailand. It is better to engage in lawful trading activities.