Bangkok gambling den bust sees five police officers transferred
The Metropolitan Police Bureau Division 5 transferred five police officers from the Khlong Tan Police Station to work at the metro police headquarters after 48 gamblers were arrested on Sunday at a gambling den in their area of supervision in Bangkok, Thailand.
The officers from the Metropolitan Police Bureau raided a gambling den in Soi Pattanakarn 54 in the Suan Luang district of Bangkok at 9pm on February 26. They arrested 48 gamblers, consisting of 17 men and 31 women, while they were playing card games. Cash amounting to 50,000 baht was confiscated from the scene.
The gamblers were charged with violating the Gambling Act by engaging in gambling without permission. This offence could result in imprisonment from three months to three years, a fine of 500 to 5,000 baht, or both.
Following the gamblers’ arrest, the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau Division 5, Thawatchakiat Jindakuansanong, reported that the bureau had transferred five police officers who supervised the area of the gambling den.
These officers were accused of recklessness and benefiting from the gambling operation. Therefore, they would be transferred from their former positions until further investigation on the matter was conducted.
The five police officers were Narit, the acting superintendent of the Khlong Tan Police Station, as well as Prasert, Thanakorn, Jakkarate, and Chartchai, who were all police lieutenant colonels.
The superintendent of the police station, Wachirakorn Wongboon, was not transferred since he was on vacation and travelling abroad when the raid took place.
The Commissioner of the Investigation Department of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, Teeradate Thammasutee – who conducted the raid – insisted that the gambling den was a temporary operation and that the transferred officers have always worked hard at suppressing gambling.
Despite the Royal Thai Police’s insistence on the absence of gambling in the country, gambling-related cases, especially related to online gambling, are continually reported in the media.
For instance, in December last year, the Cyber Police raided 13 online gambling houses in Bangkok and Chiang Rai. The authorities seized assets worth over one billion baht, including cash, luxury cars, watches, designer bags, and plots of land.
Another major gambling case was the arrest of the macau888 gambling website’s operator, Chaiwat Kajornboonthavorn, aka Benz Daemon, and 46 other gang members. The macau888 and its related gambling websites had over 5.5 billion baht in circulation.
The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society of Thailand also reported that more than 1,500 people were arrested in 2022 for online fraud and gambling. The authorities had closed down 6,024 illegal websites, many of which were online gambling sites.
Meanwhile, Thailand is resuming cockfighting, horse racing, bullfighting and Siamese fighting fish battles – with gambling permitted under strict conditions.
