Cops bust cricket betting racket, items worth over Rs 30L seized

Hyderabad: Rachakonda police busted a cricket betting racket and arrested the organiser on Friday. Police seized property worth Rs 30.5 lakh from the possession of the accused.
Acting on specific information, the Special Operations Team (SOT) of LB Nagar raided flat number 105 of Venu Mansion Apartment near TV Tower of Saleem Nagar in Malakpet on Thursday night.
Police arrested B Rajesh, 28, a businessman for organising cricket betting and seized Rs 10.16 lakh, five cell phones and 11 debit cards of various banks from his possession. Police also identified his four bank accounts containing Rs 19.89 lakh balance and initiated proceedings to freeze the transactions. A case was registered against the accused under Sections 3 and 4 of TS Gaming Act at Saroornagar police station.
Rajesh, a native of Miryalaguda in Nalgonda district completed B.Tech in 2015 and worked for a construction company in Hyderabad while staying for rent at Venu Mansion Apartment. Rajesh, in order to afford a better lifestyle, ventured into cricket betting about three years ago, Rachakonda commissioner Mahesh Bhagwat said.
Initially, Rajesh had started as a punter but later became a local bookie for the cricket betting racket organised in the name of ‘Ferrari Line’ through Telegram. “Once the interested people subscribe to the Telegram channel, the organisers send a link to subscribers whenever any cricket league starts. The organisers appoint people like Rajesh who have been punters for a significant amount of time as their local agents in cities,” the commissioner said.
“Rajesh would contact people known to him and make them join the betting network. He would collect the money through online and cash mode, transfer the amount to the organisers and collect 10% commission,” police said.