On Saturday night, 34 gamblers, including 4 Cambodians, were arrested during a police raid on a luxury resort in Chiang Mai’s San Sai district.
The raid, which took place at about 9 pm, was led by Pol Maj Gen Pichet Jiranantasin, the provincial police chief.
Pol Maj Gen Jiranantasin said the raid followed reports that a group of people had rented a resort at Moo 7 village in tambon Nong Han, San Sai district, for gambling purposes.
When a police team broke into the resort, they found 34 people inside a two-storey building playing baccarat. The gamblers, who included 4 Cambodians, were arrested.
The police seized numerous items, including 29 sets of cards, 60 chips, a Baccarat table and 2 computers.
26 slot machines on the ground floor of the building were also seized.
An investigation revealed that the illegal casino had been operating for only two days.
The gamblers were initially charged with violating a provincial order banning gatherings at crowded places issued under the emergency decree for administration in emergency situations.
On Thursday Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha approved a 10-member committee to inspect state officials’ law enforcement in cases of illegal gambling, which has been blamed for the recent outbreak of COVID-19.
The new committee has been set up to tackle illegal gambling and illegal gambling dens but will not yield any substantial results as long as the police force is not reformed, academics and a former senior police officer said.
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