Italy Cracks Down on Illegal Gaming, Raids Two Dens

Italian authorities have cracked down on an illegal gaming den tied to a Maltese gaming company as part of broader action against illegal gaming. The police also seized several illegal gaming machines from a separate location.

Italian Authorities Crack Down on Illegal Gaming Dens

According to recent reports, the police in the Italian province of Reggio Calabria just conducted a major crackdown on illegal gambling, leading to the discovery of the den in question. The campaign was carried out by the Financial Police and the Customs and Monopolies Agency, reports say.

The Reggio Calabria den was located in Bovalino and stood out as the most severe offender uncovered yet. Authorities understood that it was a fully-fledged illegal gaming shop. It was operating under the name of a company that no longer existed and breached a variety of other laws, too.

The operation showed that the gaming company in question lacked a license to operate in Italy and breached the local safety regulations and rules on safer gaming.

To top it all off, officials understood that the illegal den was tied to a Maltese gaming licensee.

Another major breakthrough was the raid on a private club in Condofuri commune. The crackdown resulted in the seizure of several illegal gambling machines that operated outside the law. The people responsible for the machines now face fines of up to EUR 50,000 and the possible closure of the club.

The suspects behind the operations have been reported to the relevant authorities.

Italy Considers Domain Blocking Solutions for Illegal iGaming

Speaking of illegal gambling in Italy, lawmakers previously revealed a massive project to curb unlicensed online gaming. The idea was the brainchild of the country’s Ministry of Economy and Finance, which proposed filtering Internet traffic going to websites that are not regulated by the national gambling regulator.

Per the proposal, Italy’s Customs and Monopolies Agency will deploy the SOGEI solution, which will automatically flag and filter illegal gambling domains.

While many praised the idea of stopping the black gaming market, some suggested that the domain blocking might represent an overreach on the government’s side.