HYDERABAD: The LB Nagar Zone Special Operations Team (SOT) along with Chaitanyapuri police have busted the IPL-2023 cricket betting racket and seized Rs 20 lakh in cash and froze Rs 1.4 crore parked in banks. Two sub-bookies along with an agent were arrested while two bookies and one main bookie belonging to Haryana are on the run.
According to Rachakonda Commissioner of Police, Devendra Singh Chauhan, “Three offenders were arrested under Sections 3 and 4 of the Telangana Gaming Act. The two sub-bookies were Edukulla Jagadeesh, and Jakkireddy Ashok Reddy while Vodupu Charan is a collection agent. Two bookies Palasa Srinivas and Suresh Myalabathula from Andhra Pradesh and the main bookie Vipuyl Monga from Haryana are absconding.”
Two offenders Jagadeesh and Ashok themselves are victims of betting. Ashok lost Rs 100 crore in a span of 10 years in various bettings, he confessed during the preliminary investigation.
The CP said: “The trio had been running the racket through ‘National Exchange9’ from which they create user IDs and supply the same along with passwords to their clients.
The accused began organising cricket bettings in and around Hyderabad from the punters to make easy money. During the present IPL -2023 season so far approximately Rs 3 crore had exchanged (directly and through bank) between the accused.”