Mayor tells cops: Prove worth vs gambling gangs

BANSALAN, Davao del Sur—This town’s mayor urged police to support his campaign against illegal gambling syndicates that operate a numbers racket here known as Last Two.

Mayor Edwin Reyes said police should “prove their worth.”

Gambling syndicates here base their winning numbers on the last two digits of results of the government-run lotto.

Reyes said it should not be difficult for police to arrest financiers if they were serious about the campaign.

Gambling syndicates, he said, have become bolder in recent years, putting up betting stations in the open and near churches and police stations.

Police, he said, appear to be tolerating the illegal activity and he was puzzled by it.

“Illegal gambling has been flourishing in this town and the police appear to be not doing anything about it,” said the mayor. Orlando Dinoy, Inquirer Mindanao