Formation of a criminal case by the Cybercrime Prosecution Directorate against two Greek citizens for violations of gaming legislation and illegal online betting
The Cybercrime Investigation Directorate received dozens of complaints about «profile» online betting company, which falsely promised, for a fee, sports match predictions
Within the scope of the police investigation it emerged that the said «profile» on a social networking site belonged to a 48-year-old local woman and was managed by her 20-year-old son
The financial loss of internet users is estimated to amount to tens of thousands of euros
The Cybercrime Prosecution Directorate has filed a regular procedure case, as part of a preliminary investigation, against a 48-year-old Greek national and a 20-year-old Greek national, who are accused of violations of gaming legislation and illegal online.
This was preceded by more than forty complaints from internet users to the Cybercrime Prosecution, in parallel with the Service's targeted actions and the carrying out of intensive checks to identify websites and internet users who engage in unfair commercial communication for games of chance and illegal betting.
Within the framework of a thorough digital investigation carried out by specialized officers, a profile was identified on a social networking website that approached other users of that network, making false promises of game and match predictions in exchange for monetary compensation.
Specifically, this profile promised that it possessed and offered for a monetary fee, which would be paid with prepaid cards, predictions regarding the outcome of all kinds of individual or team games, but mainly for football matches, which are included in the Betting Bulletin of the O.P.A.P., either outside the O.P.A.P. coupon, due to alleged contacts it had with football stakeholders.
For the above, the Athens Juvenile Prosecutor's Office was informed and the conduct of a preliminary examination was ordered, within the framework of which the Cybercrime Division identified that the specific profile of an online betting company belonged to a 48-year-old Greek woman.
In an investigation carried out at the 48-year-old's home in Thessaloniki, in the presence of a Judicial Officer, it was found that the manager of the said profile was the 20-year-old son of the 48-year-old, and two internal computer hard drives were also found and seized.
The seized digital evidence will be sent to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations for further examination, while the damage to internet users is estimated to amount to tens of thousands of euros.
The case file compiled for the case will be submitted to the competent Prosecution Authority.
