16 PEOPLE ARRESTED FOR ILLEGAL ONLINE RAFFLE ON FACEBOOK

Sixteen people who were running an illegal online raffle on Facebook were arrested today, May 1, by members of the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG) and representatives of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR).

The suspects, which run the FB Page Lucky Dream 4, were caught red-handed in their office inside a subdivision in Biñan, Laguna while livestreaming their 50th raffle event.

PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro H. Tengco said the arrest was part of the state gaming agency’s commitment to intensify the fight against illegal online gambling through strengthened collaboration with law enforcement agencies.

“We have been receiving reports of illegal online activities including those in social media platforms. As the country’s gaming regulator, it is our duty to protect the public – especially the youth — from these illegal online gambling sites,” he said.

Lucky Dream 4, which has 111,000 followers on Facebook, has been conducting live online raffle games and offering second-hand modified motorcycles as prizes, said PAGCOR Senior Vice President Raul Villanueva.

“The Lucky Dream 4 group has been operating for a time now. In one raffle, they can collect up to Php1.8 million,” he said.

Villanueva added that in one raffle event, the group can sell an average of 40,000 to 50,000 tickets, with each ticket costing Php40.

“They have amassed over Php8 million from the time they started this illegal online operation because in one draw, they can sell as many as 50k tickets,” said Villanueva, head of the PAGCOR Security Group.

“Ang masaklap nito, karamihan sa miyembro ng grupong ito ay kabataan. Ang pinaka-matanda sa kanila ay 27 years old pa lang,” he added.

“The Lucky Dream 4 group is obviously engaged in an illegal online gaming activity. Negosyo na ang ginagawa nila. They need to secure a license from PAGCOR if they want to operate an online gaming platform,” Villanueva added.

“We advise those who are involved in similar activities to think again. Register your online gaming operations with PAGCOR instead. There will be consequences if you continue to operate illegally because PAGCOR is constantly in touch with law enforcement agencies to ensure that these activities do not proliferate,” he said.