11 people were arrested in the city of Rome Italy for an alleged illegal online gaming business. The said gaming shop was earning millions of euros per day and said to be the reason for the apprehension.
The leader of the syndicate, Luigi Tancredi, placed poker screens in bars and gambling rooms allegedly operated by Italian mafias. Michele Prestipino, the case prosecutor stated that Tancredi was suspected to operate an international criminal group that favors the mafia. Gambling in Italy has been slowly legalized for the past twenty years in an attempt to loosen the connection of crimes groups in it. But the mobs have found a way to make new opportunities with it. Investigators revealed that Tancredi's business was operated in Romania through a server in Tampa, Florida. It operated at an average of 12,000 virtual poker table throughout Italy and has 11.5 million euros in bets per day. The suspect earns more than 1 million euros daily.
Meanwhile, Tancredi also made a deal with Casalesi, a powerful clan in Italy. The deal is to place poker screens in bars and gambling halls across Naples, giving them monthly cuts ranging from 45,000- 60,000 euros. Police reports even indicate that they heard the mob group talking through the phone using a wiretap, stating that, the business is more profitable than drug trafficking. And the risk is less compared to cocaine and other drug related cases and most likely the punishments are just mere fines.
One suspect was arrested with 200,000 euros of cash on hand and more than 10 million assets, including real estate and corporate bank accounts. People who engage in the game knew that it was illegal and even uses a special password to access it. Unlike its legal counterpart, this poker machines allowed unlimited stakes and gave higher winnings, this is because no tax was paid, police confirmed.
