Karnataka police constable held for ‘running’ IPL betting racket

“We had received information that he was running a cricket betting racket for the last few years. He was suspended 10 days back and was under our surveillance after which he was arrested on Thursday. The accused has now been sent in judicial custody for 15 days,” Chikkaballapur Superintendent of Police GK Mithun Kumar told indianexpress.com.

However, officials at the Chintamani police station added that the accused was admitted to a hospital after he tested positive for Covid-19 during the routine medical checkup.

“Preliminary investigation suggests that the accused was operating as a kingpin (‘supermaster’ in betting terminology) of the racket which was run with the help of a mobile application. He had shared the details of the matches with 10 other ‘masters’ who then distributed the same to 20 other youngsters who would complete the chain,” a senior officer said, explaining the modus operandi.

Meanwhile, SP Kumar added that the investigating team had seized the accused’s mobile phone after which a few online transactions made for the same were noted. “The case has been registered under section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code and a thorough investigation to find all links attached to the racket is on,” he added.

At the same time, 16 other people were arrested by the Mangaluru City Police in four separate cases for their alleged involvement in cricket betting. The police also seized a car, cash worth Rs 11 lakh, and mobile phones used for committing the crime.

In another such instance, the Central Crime Branch of the Bengaluru City Police had Monday arrested two men from Vyalikaval in the city for using an illegal mobile application to accept bets during an IPL match between Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad that took place in Dubai on October 22.