Police to Intensify Crackdown on Illegal Gambling at Hold'em Pubs and More Through Year-End

In Organized Cases, Charges of Forming a Criminal Organization Also Apply

The National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters announced on the 31st that it will conduct intensive crackdowns on illegal gambling activities, including Hold'em pubs, for five months from the 1st of next month until the end of the year.

This is the first measure since the formation of the 'Hold'em Pub Illegal Response Task Force' on the 20th of last month, which includes the Gambling Industry Supervisory Committee, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, to proactively respond to the trend of gambling using trump cards in Hold'em pubs and similar venues.

The main targets of the crackdown are gambling activities within business establishments such as Hold'em pubs, focusing on whether chips used in the games are exchanged for cash or coins, the fees involved, and the business profits of the owners.

The police plan to prove the criminal charges against all related parties, including owners, money exchangers, recruiters, and gamblers, confiscate criminal proceeds to prevent recidivism, and strictly respond by, for example, detaining owners for investigation as a principle. If the crimes are found to be organized, charges of forming a criminal organization will also be actively applied.

To encourage reporting of illegal gambling activities, the reward for apprehending offenders will also be increased. Considering the secretive nature of gambling crimes and the importance of obtaining prior information, the current reward of around 500,000 KRW will be revised to allow payments up to 5,000,000 KRW.

A police official stated, “We are actively collecting reports and reviewing the history of reports on Hold'em pubs and others that have been reported for illegal gambling but not yet cracked down on, gathering sufficient information ahead of the intensive crackdown,” adding, “We will refrain from indiscriminate crackdowns on businesses operating legally.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.