The Colombian gaming regulator led a significant operation.
Colombia.- In an operation led by Coljuegos, accompanied by the Metropolitan Police of the Aburrá Valley in Medellín; and in the Coffee Axis, by the Infantry Battalion number 8 San Mateo of the National Army, the authorities managed to seize 176 gambling elements operating without authorization. In this way, the Colombian gaming regulator met the 2024 goal related to the withdrawal of 2,000 elements of illegal luck and chance games.
This procedure, carried out jointly between Coljuegos, the Police, and the National Army, took place in the departments of Antioquia, Risaralda, and Quindío. The operation of these illegal elements meant that the health system missed out on approximately COP35.695m (USD8m) annually.
Marco Emilio Hincapié, president of Coljuegos, said: "Just in our administration, we have surpassed 3,500 illegal gaming elements seized in more than 15 departments of the country. This is the first time that the entity has advanced a frontal fight against the criminal structures financed by illegal betting."
In the city of Medellín, 41 electronic slot machines were seized, in addition to 31 online betting modules. These elements, valued at about COP30m (USD6750), failed to transfer around COP18.000m (USD4m) annually to health.
Meanwhile, in the municipality of Pereira (Risaralda), 88 modules of innovative games were seized, while in Circasia (Quindío), 16 slot machines were removed. Each year, these illegal elements failed to pay more than COP17.695m (USD3.9m) that should have been contributed to the health system.
"These elements enter an administrative sanctioning process to proceed with their respective destruction, as we have done with another 8,317 machines, online betting modules, bingo and casino tables, among others. We are using the full force of the State to attack these structures that defraud health," expressed Hincapié.
See also: Responsible gaming in Colombia: a resolution from Coljuegos requires operators to protect players
For his part, Brigadier General William Castaño, commander of the Metropolitan Police of the Aburrá Valley, stated: "We reiterate our commitment to join inter-institutional efforts that allow us to fight against the criminal structures financed through illegal betting."
Coljuegos considered it important to remember that the operation of games of luck and chance without authorization is a crime contemplated in article 312 of the Penal Code. In addition, those responsible could receive economic sanctions and disqualifications to operate games in the country.
During the VII International Congress Against Money Laundering held in the Dominican Republic in October, the president of Coljuegos, Marco Emilio Hincapié, presented to experts from Latin American countries the strategy to fight illegality in the Colombian industry, through which it has been possible to combat the criminal structures that operate bets without authorization.
The head of the Colombian gaming regulatory entity outlined the advances in the implementation of the Comprehensive System for the Prevention and Control of Money Laundering, the Financing of Terrorism and the Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (SIPLAFT).
In his presentation, Hincapié said: "This year, the sector of games of luck and chance will exceed COP1bn (USD229m) in transfers to the health system. That is why we are focusing our efforts on fighting illegality and corruption, and on strengthening the industry."
Among the results presented by the president of the entity are the destruction of 8,317 elements of games of luck and chance that operated illegally in more than 15 departments of the country, and that failed to transfer around COP260.000m (USD59.2m) to health each year.
Also, the entity has transferred 366 criminal processes to the Attorney General's Office to investigate those responsible for operating illegal games in Colombia.
Moreover, it was recently known that, through the Management of Control to Illegal Operations, Coljuegos has opened 35 administrative sanctioning processes against influencers and companies that operate raffles and promotions through social networks without the respective authorization and without paying exploitation rights.
