The owner of a Facebook page with over 2 million followers has been arrested on charges of posting online gambling advertisements related to the 2024 Uefa European Championship (Euro 2024), police said.
Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) officers, armed with a court search warrant, apprehended the 36-year-old suspect identified only as Chavalvit, the owner of Facebook page the “Top Comment” page, at his home in Nakhon Ratchasima province on Friday.
Police also seized items believed to be linked to the offences, including an iPad Pro 3 tablet, two desktop computers, an iPhone 12 Pro Max and a Kasikornbank account passbook.
The operation was prompted by heightened online activity revolving around Euro 2024 football matches, leading the CIB to monitor platforms advertising football betting.
“Top Comment”, a publicly accessible Facebook forum with a wide-reaching audience exceeding 2 million followers, was among the sites investigators uncovered. The page was seen posting comments containing advertisements for numerous gambling websites, police said.
Mr Chavalvit initially admitted to owning and operating the Facebook page, which has been active since 2014. Its revenue comes primarily from advertisements, with over 90% derived from football betting platforms, he told investigators. Monthly earnings from the advertisements exceed 150,000 baht.
The suspect has been charged with promoting gambling activities in violation of the Gambling Act.
The “Top Comment” Facebook page earned 90% of its advertising revenue from football betting platforms, its operator told police.