City Task Force busts IPL betting gang in Visakhapatnam

The cricketing season is generally accompanied by a surge in betting activity. The season typically witnesses punters organising betting and luring many youngsters towards the activity. Vizag too has its fair share of betting activity during cricket matches. While four individuals were earlier arrested for organising betting during an ODI between and Australia, another gang was recently held for placing bets this IPL season. The City Task Force (CTF) team, led by Assistant Commissioner of Police Mahendra Mathe, has successfully busted a cricket betting bookies gang for indulging in IPL betting in Visakhapatnam.

The police team had raided a place in Kothapalem area, near Gopalapatnam, and arrested six persons. The gang members have been identified as A Rama Chandra Reddy (Allipuram), Sh. Ishak (Gopalapatnam), B Kishore Kumar (Sriram Nagar), T Bujji (Chandra Nagar), A Maha Lakshmi (Nagendra Colony) and M Durga Prasad (Kothapalem).

The police seized Rs.32,100 in cash, one mobile phone, and three books. This is further to an extensive effort by the CTF in identifying and nabbing bookies, who are organising bets, for the upcoming IPL 2019 matches being played in the city on May 8 and 10. The members of the IPL betting gang have been handed over to the Gopalapatnam police in Visakhapatnam. A case has been registered and an investigation is underway to gain further insights into it.