January 27 2016
Hundreds of suspected money laundering operations have been reported at betting shops as criminals plough drug money in to gambling machines.
The Gambling Commission has revealed that over the past year, 633 reports were filed to it and the National Crime Agency by bookmakers where operators suspect the proceeds of crime are being used on their premises.
It has long been suspected that drug barons employ ‘cleaners’ to launder drug money through high-stakes gambling terminals but this is the first time such industry data has confirmed this is happening on such a scale.
After a one-year battle the Gambling Commission released data in response to a Freedom of Information request for the number of such Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) between April 2014 and March 2015.