Artists, YouTubers held for promoting online betting

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, June 16: The Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office arrested eight individuals working in the entertainment industry under the charge of promoting online betting from different parts of Kathmandu on Wednesday.

Making the arrestees public on Thursday, the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office (KVCIO) informed that the arrested individuals used to promote 1xBet, an online betting application, through their YouTube videos despite knowing that it was illegal.

The arrested individuals have been identified as 35-year-old Marichman Shrestha (Balchhi Dhurbe), 36-year-old Raju Poudel (Raju Master), 28-year-old Pawan Khatiwada (Myakuri), 28-year-old prankster Alish Rai, 24-year-old Jalan Gharti Magar (Jalan), 19-year-old Ganesh Devkota (Ganesh GD), 25-year-old Saroj Ghimire (Dhedu Budho) and 28-year-old Begam Nepali 

(Bhatbhate Maila).

Although some of the arrested artists were promoting the betting sites for more than a year, Nepal Police took them under custody only on Wednesday. 

“The entertainment artists provided promo codes of their names in the videos they uploaded. This step has promoted online betting, a crime, among the youth generation,” said Superintendent of Police (SP) Rabindra Regmi, spokesperson of the KVCIO.

According to the KVCIO, the eight arrested individuals have been kept at the District Police Range, Kathmandu, for further legal procedures.

“We are also investigating the benefits for the artists in return for promoting the online betting website,” said SP Regmi.

The KVCIO had arrested a group of five agents for organising illegal betting through 1xBet and cryptocurrency trade from Bhaktapur on June 13. During the investigation, it was found that the group had made transactions worth over Rs. 741 million through different digital wallets and banks.