PATTAYA — Police have dismantled two major online gambling networks in a single day following raids on two luxury villas in Pattaya, arresting 68 Indian nationals in operations with a combined annual turnover of 2.3 billion baht.

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Both operations were carried out on Tuesday at rented villas in tambon Nong Prue, Bang Lamung district, Pattaya tourism and immigration police announced on Wednesday. Forty-three Indian nationals acting as administrators of gambling websites were arrested in the first raid, while 25 others were detained in the second operation for running major online gambling platforms.

First Raid: 1.6 Billion Baht Network

The first raid was led by officers from the Tourist Police Bureau with support from Nong Prue tourist police and immigration authorities. Acting on a warrant issued by the Pattaya Provincial Court, officers searched a two-storey villa with a swimming pool after receiving reports of an unusually large number of foreign nationals staying at the property.

Pol Col Man Rotthong, a bureau investigator, said the ground floor had been converted into an office, where 43 Indian nationals were found working in various roles. The team seized 33 computers, 50 mobile phones and 27 SIM cards.

He said the group operated as administrators for 23 overseas-based gambling websites, including clickbetexch1, unicon360 and puple399, targeting mainly Indian customers. Each site was estimated to generate about 600,000 rupees per day, or roughly 200,000 baht, with the network’s total annual turnover put at approximately 1.6 billion baht.

The suspects had rented the villa for 120,000 baht per month and had used it as a base for more than a year. Staff rotations were kept below 50 people at any given time and were overseen by a figure known only as “AK”, believed to be responsible for logistics and supplies, according to Pol Col Man.

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Intelligence-Gathering

Police launched the investigation after an undercover source reported suspicious activity at a house near the Mabprachan Reservoir. Many foreigners were said to be living there, but the property remained unusually closed off. Large amounts of food and goods were delivered to the property, and a van made frequent pickups and drop-offs. Officers monitored the location for over a month, gathering intelligence both on the ground and from the air, before collecting enough evidence to secure a search warrant.

Second Raid: 700 Million Baht Operation

In the second raid, investigators from Immigration Division 3 searched another villa in the same area following a tip-off. The property had been tightly secured, with the garage converted into a glass-enclosed office to conceal activities from outside view. Officers found 25 Indian nationals working in organized roles, including marketing, accounting and customer service.

A search uncovered links to at least three major gambling websites, all bearing names ending in “777.” These platforms were found to generate approximately 5.6 million rupees per day, or roughly 700 million baht annually. More than 80 items, including desktop computers, laptops and mobile phones, were seized.

Charges Filed

Police said all of the suspects had entered Thailand on tourist visas. All 68 individuals have been charged with working without permits or working beyond the scope of their permitted rights as foreign nationals. They were handed over to investigators at Nong Prue Police Station for further legal action.

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Ongoing Investigation

Authorities said further investigations are underway to identify financiers and dismantle the wider networks behind the operations, both in Thailand and abroad. The raids represent one of the largest single-day crackdowns on foreign-run online gambling operations in Pattaya, underscongoing efforts by Thai authorities to target illegal businesses operating under the guise of tourist activity.

-Thailand News (TN)