Police have dismantled an online football betting syndicate believed to be operating in conjunction with the FIFA World Cup 2026 period following a raid at an office unit in Cheras early yesterday morning.
A total of 32 Chinese nationals, comprising 29 men and three women aged between 20 and 40, were arrested during the operation conducted under Op Soga XI at around 2.40am by the Cheras District Police Criminal Investigation Division.
Kuala Lumpur Police Chief Datuk Fadil Marsus said the premises was used as a command centre to manage customer accounts, oversee financial transactions and promote illegal online football betting activities.
During the raid, police seized 28 computers, multiple mobile phones of various brands, internet modems and other equipment believed to have been used in running the gambling operation.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the syndicate had been actively operating for about three weeks, running betting activities through dedicated websites and coordinating operations from the Cheras office unit.
The case is being investigated under several laws, including Section 4(1)(c) of the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953, Section 4(1)(e) of the Betting Act 1953 and Section 6(1) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
All suspects have been remanded for four days until July 4 to assist investigations, while authorities continue probing the network behind the operation.
Police also stated that enforcement under Op Soga XI will be intensified throughout the FIFA World Cup 2026 period, with a focus on betting agents, organisers and individuals involved in both physical and online gambling activities.
