Cricket betting racket busted in Delhi, seven held

An online betting racket was busted in Delhi and seven bookies arrested from north Delhi during the India-Australia cricket match a day earlier in Kolkata, police said on Friday.

Sumit Malhotra, 30, Ashprit Singh, 25, Anubhav Anand, 22, Sumit Singh Sachdeva, 22, Satnam Singh, 38, Sachin Sehgal, 36, and Gagandeep, 31 -- all residents of Delhi -- were arrested from a flat in the Model Town area on Thursday night as the One Day International between India and Australia was on at the Eden Gardens, Deputy Commissioner of Police Milind Mahadeo Dumbere said.

The accused were accepting bets online as well as through mobile phones.

The bookies had downloaded a "betting assistance software" which shows rates, timings and preference of persons, the officer said.

Police seized 12 mobile phones, three laptops and a notebook containing bets accepted during the match, among other things.

The accused had accepted bets totalling Rs 1.95 lakh and won about Rs 27,570 in bet money, police said. The racket was on in the area for four weeks.

--IANS

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