Bali busts online gambling ring, arrests 48 Chinese and Taiwanese

Indonesian authorities have broken up an illegal online gambling ring operating on the island of Bali.

On Friday, the Jakarta Post reported that the Ngurah Rai Immigration Office had detained 48 foreigners suspected of operating an illegal online gambling business out of a villa in Jimbaran, a tourist resort on the island.

Following a raid on Thursday, police detained 35 men and 13 women who hailed from Taiwan and China. Police said some of the suspects had attempted to escape but officers were confident they’d rounded up the entire gang. Some of those detained lacked proper documentation, while others had arrived on tourist visas but had overstayed their welcome.

Police also seized 35 laptops, 27 mobile phones, 59 modems, 85 WiFi routers and other technical tools of the trade. Immigration official Tieldwight Sabru said more investigation was needed to determine the scope of the operation but authorities are “quite sure” the group was accepting wagers from within Indonesia as well as from other countries.