Police arrested 104 individuals suspected of running online football gambling websites, with operations totalling over a billion baht, in June, according to figures released by the government yesterday.
Digital, Economy and Society Minister Chaiwut Thanakhamanusorn, told a news briefing that the ministry has joined forces with the national police to crack down on illegal gambling activity. The swoop also saw a further 255 suspects arrested for promoting gambling online, with 77 million baht in assets seized for inspection.
Meanwhile, the police and the ministry have charged 28 suspects with sharing fake news and are preparing to charge 38 more, said Mr Chaiwut, adding that most had said they were unaware of the inaccuracy of the stories they had shared on social media.
However, the minister said they had endorsed the content with their comments and were therefore party to defamation. The wrongdoers face a jail term of up to five years and/or a 100,000-baht fine, according to the Computer Crime Act.
Furthermore, those who disseminate fake news related to the Covid-19 outbreak can also be charged and sentenced to two years in prison and/or a 40,000-baht fine, according to the Emergency Decree.
He said the officers are investigating 167 more websites suspected of promoting online gambling. The police will seek court orders to block or delete the offending URLs from the internet.
Mr Chaiwut urged people to verify the validity of news they post on their social media.