Small Town Lottery, a numbers game that the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office runs, has given former “jueteng” bet collectors a steady source of income after the government intensified its campaign against illegal gambling. —DELFIN T. MALLARI JR.File Photo
LUCENA CITY — Some 1,162 suspected illegal gamblers were arrested in simultaneous operations ond Tuesday in the Calabarzon region.
The Police Regional Office 4A (PRO-4A) reported on Wednesday, September 7, that cops in Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon provinces nabbed those engaged in illegal cockfights, card games, video karera, and board games such as bingo and mah-jong during 496 operations.
The police also collared suspected bet collectors for the illegal operation of Small Town Lottery (STL) called “bookies.”
Seized from the suspects were STL bet collection forms, paraphernalia, calculators and money bets in different denominations.
The police said the suspects failed to produce identification cards issued by licensed STL operator in the province.
Authorities seized P290,873 bet money from the illegal gamblers identified as operators, financiers, and bettors.