39 nabbed over illegal football betting

Thirty-nine suspects were arrested in Singapore in an operation against illegal gambling during the Euro 2016 football tournament, while about 4,000 were caught worldwide.

Singapore police were part of Interpol-led operation SOGA VI, during which nearly 4,000 raids were carried out across France, Greece, Italy, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and China, including Hong Kong and Macau.

The raids were carried out on illegal gambling dens that handled an estimated US$649 million (S$875 million) worth of bets, said the global police cooperation agency yesterday.

Police said the 39 arrested in Singapore were suspected of remote gambling activities.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the value of illegal bets collected by these suspects was more than $2.5 million, police said.

OCBC alerts customers to phone scams

OCBC Bank has advised its customers and the public to be alert after a sharp rise in phone scams impersonating the bank.

OCBC said in a statement yesterday that it received 1,081 calls between July 1 and 17 from customers and the public on the matter - compared to 16 for the whole of April.

To date, more than 1,200 calls have been received, it said.

OCBC stressed that it does not initiate automated voice calls that require an interactive response. English is also used, unless a customer has indicated a preference for a different language.

Customers will also not be requested to make any funds transfer to another account.

Police arrest man over Boat Quay death

Police have arrested a 47-year-old man in connection with an early morning incident at a pub at Boat Quay on July 13.

Police said in a statement that they received a call for assistance at the pub that day.

Upon arrival, they established that a 55-year-old man had been taken unconscious to Singapore General Hospital. He was pronounced dead last Saturday.

A man is expected to appear in court tomorrow.