Malaysia police arrest 282 in two-day nationwide raids on online gambling and unlicensed lottery premises
The Royal Malaysia Police arrested 282 people in 201 raids on business premises across the country on October 31 and November 1, 2026, in an operation against online gambling and unlicensed public lotteries called "Ops Dadu Khas". The police statement lists the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953 and Immigration Act offences under investigation, and police say they will recommend cutting electricity to the raided premises and examine money-laundering charges.
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Overview
- Police carried out 201 raids, 108 on online gambling activity and 93 on unlicensed public lotteries, on October 31 and November 1, 2026, including in Sabah and Sarawak.
- The 282 people arrested were aged 20 to 65: 229 men and 53 women, 223 Malaysians and 59 foreign nationals, based on initial checks of identity documents.
- Police seized tablets, mobile phones, mobile printers and RM32,149 in cash. All suspects were remanded for one to four days.
- The investigation covers sections 4A(a), 4B(a) and 4(1)(c) of the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953 and sections 6(1)(c) and 15(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
- Police will recommend cutting the electricity supply to all 201 premises under section 21A of the Common Gaming Houses Act and are looking at action under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA).
The Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) arrested 282 people in a two-day nationwide operation against online gambling and unlicensed public lotteries, raiding 201 business premises on October 31 and November 1, 2026.
According to a media statement issued on November 2 by Commissioner Datuk M. Kumar, director of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at police headquarters in Bukit Aman, Kuala Lumpur, the operation, named "Ops Dadu Khas", targeted business premises across the country. Of the 201 raids, 108 involved online gambling activity and 93 involved the sale of unlicensed public lottery numbers.
Who was arrested
The statement says the 282 people arrested were aged between 20 and 65, comprising 229 men and 53 women. Of these, 223 were Malaysians and 59 were foreign nationals. The statement notes that nationalities were based on an initial check of identity documents and are subject to further verification.
Speaking to reporters at Bukit Aman on November 2, Kumar said the foreign nationals were from Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal and Bangladesh and had been employed by local syndicates. He said the raids also covered Sabah and Sarawak.
Police seized tablets, mobile phones and mobile printers believed to have been used for illegal gambling, together with RM32,149 in cash.
Kumar said preliminary investigations had identified several syndicates operating under names including "Winbox" and "Alibaba", and that police were working to identify their leaders. He said the premises were often cafes, beverage outlets and grocery shops, and that operators could move between locations because betting and transactions were carried out online.
The offences listed in the police statement
All 282 suspects were remanded for between one and four days. The police statement lists five offences under investigation and the penalties it attaches to each:
| Provision | Offence (as described in the statement) | Penalty listed in the statement |
|---|---|---|
| Common Gaming Houses Act 1953, s4A(a) | Assisting in carrying on a public lottery | Fine of RM20,000 to RM200,000 and prison of up to 5 years |
| Common Gaming Houses Act 1953, s4B(a) | Dealing or transacting in any way with any part of a gaming machine | Fine of RM10,000 to RM100,000 for each gaming machine seized, and prison of up to 5 years |
| Common Gaming Houses Act 1953, s4(1)(c) | Keeping, managing or assisting in managing a common gaming house | Fine of RM5,000 to RM50,000 and prison of up to 3 years, plus a fine of RM5,000 to RM50,000 for each gaming machine seized |
| Immigration Act 1959/63, s6(1)(c) | Foreign national entering or staying in Malaysia without a valid pass or permit | Fine of up to RM10,000, prison of up to 5 years or both, and up to six strokes of the cane (s6(3)) |
| Immigration Act 1959/63, s15(1)(c) | Foreign national remaining after a pass or permit has expired or been cancelled | Fine, prison of up to 5 years or both (s15(4)) |
Power cuts and money-laundering checks
The statement says enforcement will continue with local authorities and other agencies, including cutting electricity supplies under section 21A of the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953. Kumar told reporters that police would recommend disconnecting electricity to all 201 premises once investigations were completed and sufficient evidence had been gathered.
He said police were also considering action under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA), as offences under the Common Gaming Houses Act are predicate offences for money-laundering investigations. He added that hundreds of online gambling advertisements are removed from social media every day with the help of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
Earlier operations
"Ops Dadu Khas" has been used before. On September 28, 2026, the same CID unit raided eight premises in and around Kuala Lumpur that police said were call centres promoting gambling, romance scams and fake investments, arresting 74 foreign nationals, according to a CID statement reported by state broadcaster RTM.
In a written reply tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on October 29, 2026, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said 828,438 pieces of online gambling content had been taken down and 7,411 gambling websites blocked at MCMC's request between January 1, 2022 and September 15, 2026. He said PDRM is responsible for investigating and enforcing gambling offences, while MCMC provides technical support such as website blocking and content removal.
In October, police in Perak arrested six men over an online gambling call centre that allegedly targeted Australians (Perak police hold six over online gambling call centre). AskSpinner records gambling enforcement actions across the region in its Asia gambling enforcement and fines tracker.
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Andrea Rivera explores the evolving world of iGaming through the companies trying new things and the markets taking shape around them. An editor at AskSpinner News, Andrea combines research with storytelling, bringing information and perspective to industry analysis without losing the story that makes it worth reading.
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