The Deputy Director of Thailand's Technology Crime Suppression Division (บช.สอท.), Atthasit Sudsanguan (พล.ต.ต.อรรถสิทธิ์ สุดสงวน), stated in an interview that if the Thai government decides to open legal casinos, it would help reduce illegal online gambling sites and bring revenue to the country, thereby promoting economic development.
Deputy Director Atthasit pointed out that opening legal casinos is a policy of the Thai government aimed at more effectively controlling gambling activities, especially as a large number of online gambling sites have emerged in the border areas of Thailand, causing numerous public security issues.
In recent years, the frequent intertwinement of online gambling and criminal activities, particularly some scam gangs, often engage in illegal profit-making through setting up online gambling sites. These gangs are often found in Thailand's border areas, closely connected with countries like Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos.
Investigations show that these scam groups in these areas are not only involved in online gambling but also linked to drug trafficking and other criminal activities.
To address these challenges, the Thai government has proposed the legalization of gambling, aiming to regulate and control gambling activities through legal channels.
The government plans to implement strict management measures to ensure participant eligibility reviews, tracking of money flows, and comprehensive financial audits to prevent illegal funds from entering the market.
The government hopes that by doing so, it can not only effectively reduce illegal online gambling activities but also use the tax revenue generated from legal gambling to promote national development.
Currently, the Thai police are intensifying their efforts to crack down on domestic online gambling. Deputy Director Atthasit mentioned that although the police have successfully combated many illegal gambling sites within Thailand, there are still some sites and servers set up abroad, such as in the United States and Canada.
Due to international laws and diplomatic relations between countries, Thai police cannot directly shut down these overseas gambling sites.
Atthasit stated that despite the challenges of cross-border law enforcement, the government is still making continuous efforts through international cooperation and relevant legal frameworks to combat the spread of global online gambling.
He noted that legalizing casinos would be an important step in solving this problem, looking forward to the government enacting relevant regulations to ensure that gambling activities are conducted in a legal, controlled environment, reducing the occurrence of criminal activities, and bringing new sources of fiscal revenue to the country.
