Public figures who were summoned by the Justice for promoting unlicensed online casinos have started to make their declarations.
Argentina.- This Tuesday, October 22, prosecutor Juan Rozas, from the Specialized Gambling Prosecution Office of the City of Buenos Aires, began taking statements from influencers summoned by the Justice for promoting betting sites that operate without a license through social networks.
It is worth remembering that there are 16 influencers under scrutiny as a result of a judicial investigation that included raids and a detention in a private neighborhood of the Atlantic Coast of Buenos Aires. The summons were issued to appear at the prosecutor's office, located at Paseo Colón Avenue 1333. The case was initiated following a complaint by the Argentine Chamber of Casino Rooms, Bingos, and Annexes.
Among those investigated are actresses, actors, singers, former participants of the reality show “Big Brother” and other characters who gained fame on social networks, both on TikTok and Instagram.
The first names that emerged were those of Florencia Peña and Marito Laurens, known on TikTok as "Your Trusted Butcher." The list also includes: Elián Valenzuela (L-Gante), pilot Traniela Campolieto, Morena Rial, Florencia Vigna, Alma Berezowski, Mathias “Coker” Nicolás Vasile, and Joaquín López.
Additionally, former Big Brother contestants Juliana “Furia” Scaglione, Romina Uhrig, Williams López, Agostina Spinelli, Federico “Manzana” Farias, Emmanuel Vich, and Camila Lattanzio were also notified.
The prosecution has screenshots, videos, and other evidence of the promotions carried out by the accused.
The Cyberpatrol Division of the Argentine Federal Police identified over five months various users who promoted online games trying to attract players to the "Virtual Casino."
According to judicial sources, they were charged with alleged infringement of article 301 bis of the Penal Code which penalizes anyone who exploits, manages, operates, or organizes “by themselves or through others, any modality or system of capturing gambling games without having the appropriate authorization issued by the competent jurisdictional authority.”
Due to the complaints made by the City of Buenos Aires through Lotería de la Ciudad (LOTBA) to combat child gambling addiction and illegal betting, on Tuesday, October 8, the Justice carried out 30 raids and dismantled an organization that exploited illegal online gaming platforms. The mega-operation resulted in four people detained, more than 1800 illegal pages blocked, and the judicial notification of the influencers.
As part of the operation, at least 1,835 sites were blocked, adding to the list of more than 200 pages that the City's Public Prosecutor's Office had already removed in September of this year. Also, 16 celebrities and influencers were judicially notified for the "promotion and recruitment of bettors through advertising they have carried out on social networks and other media."
Among the items seized by the City Police, the Federal Police, the Buenos Aires Province Police, and the Judicial Investigations Corps (CIJ) of the City's Public Prosecutor's Office are more than AR$250m, dollars, and firearms.
Among the measures taken by the City to tackle child gambling addiction is the closure of registration for new licenses and a maximum limit of 11 operators, which are the ones currently active and regulated. Additionally, 55 awareness workshops have been conducted, reaching more than 6,000 students, and access to online gaming sites has been blocked in 1,770 schools.
