More than 150 mule accounts used for online gambling frozen in Penang, says chief minister
GEORGE TOWN, May 22 — Police have frozen a total of 150 mule accounts used for online gambling in Penang, involving RM32 million between 2023 and this year.
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the police have conducted Ops Dadu continuously to bust illegal gambling and scam syndicates.
'There were 2,681 arrests by the police involving 2,337 online gambling cases with 1,390 charges in court in 2023 and 1,810 arrests involving 1,510 cases with 1,084 charges in court in 2024,' he said in reply to a question by Joseph Ng Soon Siang (DAP - Air Itam) at the state legislative assembly on the online gambling and scam cases in Penang.
He added that this year, up to March, a total of 542 arrests were made involving 485 cases, while 255 charges in court were filed.
Chow said the federal government has amended the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 to introduce stronger penalties against cybercrimes, including online gambling and digital scams.
'The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has blocked thousands of online gambling sites,' he said.
He noted that 6,381 sites were blocked between 2020 and 2022.
'MCMC has also terminated over 212,000 phone lines that were used to send spam related to gambling and scams,' he said.
He said the police are working with MCMC, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), and local governments to conduct joint raids and operations.
He added that electricity and water supplies were also cut off at premises involved in illegal gambling activities.
'The government has conducted awareness programmes through various platforms to educate the public on the dangers of online gambling and cyber scams,' he said.
He said similar awareness programmes were also implemented in schools to educate students on this matter.
He acknowledged challenges in dismantling these online gambling syndicates, as they use multi-layered structures to avoid detection and enforcement action.
'The government is urging social media platforms to invest in AI to speed up the process of identifying and removing illegal gambling sites,' he said.
He added that compulsory licensing for social media platforms was aimed at increasing accountability and easing enforcement action against illegal content.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Free Malaysia Today
6 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
‘Tan Sri' in highway probe discharged, to be quizzed by MACC
MACC chief Azam Baki said anti-corruption officers would seek to set a date for taking the Tan Sri's statement. PETALING JAYA : A corporate figure at the centre of a corruption probe into the alleged misappropriation of sukuk funds for a Klang Valley highway project will be summoned soon by graft busters. Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief Azam Baki said the 'Tan Sri' was discharged from hospital today after undergoing treatment for an undisclosed illness. 'I have been made to understand that the doctors have just allowed him to be discharged. My officers will be in touch with him as soon as possible to set a date to take his statement,' he said, according to Astro Awani. Azam added that the Tan Sri was the main suspect in the probe, while other witnesses were still giving their statements. He previously said that hundreds of millions in sukuk funds were suspected to have been channelled to a company owned by the corporate figure, and later misused for personal interests rather than the intended highway project. The funds were allegedly transferred to multiple entities, including proxy companies and the personal account of the Tan Sri's wife, and used to acquire real estate, luxury vehicles and goods, as well as fund gambling activities. MACC has seized individual bank accounts totalling RM4.5 million, eight company accounts totalling RM33 million, a luxury condominium and a plot of land valued at RM24.5 million, as well as nine vehicles valued at RM7.6 million in its probe. The anti-graft agency had also seized luxury watches valued at about RM25 million, designer handbags valued at RM3 million, jewellery and diamonds worth RM6 million, four horses valued at RM400,000, and premium alcoholic beverages worth RM3 million.
Free Malaysia Today
9 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
MMEA fends off aggressive Vietnamese fishing crew off Miri
The Vietnamese and Indonesian crews of two foreign fishing vessels have been detained by the MMEA for encroaching into Malaysian waters, the agency said. (MMEA pic) KUCHING : Crew members of a Vietnamese fishing boat took aggressive measures when a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency patrol vessel caught the boat attempting to trespass into Malaysian waters in northern Sarawak yesterday. MMEA Miri zone director Khairol Anuar Saad said the crew of the Vietnamese boat refused to cooperate when they were confronted about 31 nautical miles northwest of Kuala Niah, Miri. 'They carried out dangerous manoeuvres, throwing hard and sharp objects at the MMEA enforcement personnel in rough seas, threatening the safety and lives of the security forces,' he said in a statement today. However, the situation was successfully controlled and the vessel, with three Vietnamese on board, was detained without any injuries to maritime personnel on duty. The MMEA had detained another vessel with five Indonesians on board northwest of Kuala Suai, Miri. Khairol said the two vessels and crew, aged between 25 and 53, were then taken to the Miri maritime zone complex in a journey which took nearly 18 hours due to rough weather over the long distance. The two boats and its fishing and navigation equipment, with a value of about RM3.3 million, were seized.
Free Malaysia Today
9 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Everything happened so fast, says boat capsize survivor
Workers lifting up the wreckage of the boat which overturned in the waters of Tanjung Harapan, Selangor, yesterday. (Bernama pic) KLANG : Everything happened very fast, boat tragedy survivor Chang Yan Qin Alvin, 17, said today after being rescued from a boat which capsized and sank off Tanjung Harapan yesterday. Two people and a toddler died in the incident, while a couple is still missing. Chang, one of six people who survived, said the tragedy occurred when the boat made a U-turn about 30 minutes after departing from the Royal Selangor Yacht Club dock. 'The incident happened very quickly when the relatively fast-moving boat suddenly overturned, and in less than 10 seconds, water had entered all compartments of the boat,' he told reporters at the Selangor maritime agency office today. 'The situation inside the boat became chaotic, but I saved myself by trying to swim before managing to sit on top of the overturned boat.' Chang said he could only scream for help after realising other passengers were not visible and after about five minutes of holding on to the boat, fishermen in another boat approached and rescued him. They contacted the authorities for assistance. 'I understand that this was the second test run for the boat, and before this, the boat was found to be in overall good condition,' he said. Family members saying prayers for victims of the boat capsize in Tanjung Harapan. A toddler and two people died, while a married couple is missing. (Bernama pic) The tragedy took place at about 5pm yesterday. The missing victims have been identified as Gan Hon Tat, 32, and his wife, Careen Man, 29, both from Klang Utama. Their three-year-old son, Darren, was among the three found dead in the front compartment of the boat, alongside family friends Cheu Son Hin, 50, and Fong Yong Sen, 29, also from Klang Utama. Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency operations officer Syafiq Sazali said the boat was partially refloated at 2.20pm today, after which the team began pumping out the water. Missing victims 'swept away' The fire and rescue department has not ruled out the possibility that two missing victims were swept away by currents while the boat was being towed to the Selangor maritime jetty. Port Klang fire and rescue chief Haikal Jammy Ngali said the capsized boat was towed by a public boat for about 500m before a distress call was received at around 5pm. He said the department also did not rule out the possibility that the victims, a married couple, were thrown overboard during the capsize. Klang Utara police chief S Vijaya Rao said the police had not found any clues regarding the two missing victims even though the search radius covered an area of five nautical miles. He said all the victims were believed not to be wearing life jackets, which made the search and rescue effort more difficult. He said initial investigations also revealed that the boat, which was being test-driven, was operated by its owner at the time.
