Vizag Police Arrest Four Cricket Prediction Analysts for Promoting Online Betting
During the investigation, police found that the accused had purchased three high-end cars and several flats using the proceeds from illegal betting activities
Visakhapatnam: Visakhapatnam cyber crime police have arrested four cricket prediction analysts for allegedly promoting illegal online betting through Telegram channels and earning lakhs of rupees every month.
According to police, the accused engineering graduates by qualification initially incurred heavy losses ranging from ₹1.5 crore to ₹3 crore each through online cricket betting. In an attempt to recover their losses, they later began operating as cricket prediction analysts and eventually came in contact with Dubai-based bookies, who used them to promote illegal betting websites.
The arrested persons were identified as Desineni Sumanth alias Nani (25) of Tirupati district, Lankipalli Ganesh (27) of Chittoor district, Koppolu Murali (21) of Guntur district, and Madam Badreshwar Reddy (22) of Guntur district.
Police said the accused ran multiple Telegram channels with thousands of subscribers. Sumanth operated a channel titled Nani Cricket Betting Prediction, which had about 1.49 lakh subscribers, while Ganesh ran the Vinay Reddy Cricket Prediction Channel with nearly 60,000 followers.
Investigators revealed that Sumanth, who holds a BTech degree from Delhi and an MSc from the UK, earned more than ₹20 lakh per month by promoting Dubai-based betting websites. The analysts frequently travelled to Dubai to coordinate with bookies and received payments for promoting various betting applications through their channels.
The probe also revealed links to two previously arrested persons, Santosh Reddy and his girlfriend Keerthi, who were identified as the main accused in the betting syndicate.
During the investigation, police found that the accused had purchased three high-end cars and several flats using the proceeds from illegal betting activities.
A case has been registered under Sections 112(1), 319(2) and 318(4), read with 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Sections 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and Sections 3 and 4 of the Andhra Pradesh Gaming Act, 1974. The four accused have been remanded to 14 days’ judicial custody.