Cricket betting racket busted, bookie arrested

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The Central Crime Branch (CCB) sleuths busted yet another cricket betting racket by arresting a master bookie operating in the city. The accused was identified as Prakash Shetty.

According to the Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda, CCB officers from the Special Enquiry wing received information regarding a person, in the Shankarapura police station limits, indulging in cricket betting.

He had obtained the User ID and password of a website "allexch. bet" from a master bookie and had given it to his accomplices. Subsequently, Shetty was arrested and Rs 1.5 lakh in cash and one mobile phone were seized from his possession.

A case was registered at the Shankarapura police station. The CCB officers, who took over the probe, found during Shetty’s questioning that he was training four people from other states at a house in Udupi under the Ajjarkad police station limits.

The police said Shetty trained his accomplices about the website and other online betting apps and later created a WhatsApp group called "Team Developer."

Based on information obtained from Shetty, the CCB on Thursday raided the house in Udupi where Shetty coached the others and seized six mobile phones and one tablet device. They also froze Rs 41,71,000 in three bank accounts used for thhe crime, Dayananda said.