SBC News US Treasury Department warns casino operators on taking illegal bets

US Treasury Department warns casino operators on taking illegal bets

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The US Treasury Department has warned licensed casino operators that they must actively combat illegal sports betting.

The Treasury submitted a letter to multiple gambling operator’s just weeks before the NFL Super Bowl, US sports most wagered event.

“Increases in sports betting conducted on behalf of third parties are facilitating criminal activity and posing a money laundering risk to the U.S financial system,” the Treasury said in a letter made public on Friday

Illegal sports betting and criminal activity having become a pressing matter for US policy makers and national security bodies. Gambling reports have stated that the majority of bets placed in the US are done illegally by consumers, raising concerns of money laundering and the creation of a lucrative underground market for criminal gangs.

The US currently allows legalised sports betting in four states – Nevada, Montana, Oregon and Delaware. Regulators and law enforcement authorities are concerned by intelligence suggesting that criminals are making bets with legal sports book operations, using intermediaries, or “runners,” to place bets, the Treasury bureau said

Runners have been known to loiter at casinos, keeping numerous mobile phones and tablets near them to receive orders from illegal gambling rings.

The Treasury Department wants all gambling operators to enforce tighter controls in order to stop the wagers being placed by intermediaries.

The letter reminds casinos that the Bank Secrecy Act requires them to ask gamblers whether their bets are for themselves, and to report any wagers for third parties as suspicious activity.

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