“Policemen of the General Administration for Economic Security and Combating the Corruption of the Russian MIA together with the General Administration of Internal Security of the Russian MIA and servicemen of the specialized divisions of the Russian Guard suppressed unlawful operations of three casinos. The clandestine gambling clubs were located in high-class multi-room apartments in the center of Saint Petersburg,” said Russian MIA official representative Irina Volk.

The organizers of unlawful gambling had used conspiracy measures. Gamblers had received SMS messages about the gambles to be carried out in the clubs. There had been guards and 24-hour video surveillance in the apartments.

After the inspection of the three clubs, the police seized over 70 gambling machines, card tables, gambling roulettes, computer hardware, communication devices, “black” accounting statements, promissory notes, a large number of gambling chips and decks of playing cards.

According to the information available to the police, the malefactors' estimated revenue from the unlawful activities of the gambling clubs had exceeded 50 million rubles per month.

Based on the collected materials, the authorities initiated a criminal case subject to Article 171.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. One of the organizers of the illegal activities admitted his guilt. He was charged with the crime and gave written undertaking not to leave.

The complex of investigation and search measures aimed to detect other people involved in those unlawful activities is ongoing.

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