Five people charged in esports investigation

Victorian Police have advised that detectives from the Sporting Integrity Intelligence Unit have this week charged five people in relation to a 2019 investigation into suspicious betting activity relating to an esports league.

The investigation commenced in March 2019 after police received information from a betting agency about activity linked to a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) tournament.

It’s alleged that players were arranging to throw matches and subsequently placing bets on those matches.

In August last year, detectives executed warrants in Mill Park, South Morang and Mount Eliza. A warrant was also executed in Perth by WA Police.

This week, five people have been charged as follows:

• A 20-year-old Mill Park man has been charged with engage in conduct that corrupts or would corrupt a betting outcome of an event or event contingency (section 195C Crimes Act 1958) x2, use of corrupt conduct information for betting purposes (section 195F Crimes Act 1958) x2, and possess cannabis;

• A 20-year-old South Morang man has been charged with use of corrupt conduct information for betting purposes (section 195F Crimes Act 1958) x3;

• A 20-year-old Mill Park man has been charged with use of corrupt conduct information for betting purposes (section 195F Crimes Act 1958) x3;

• A 20-year-old Mill Park man has been charged with use of corrupt conduct information for betting purposes (section 195F Crimes Act 1958) x3; and

• A 27-year-old Sale man has been charged with use of corrupt conduct information for betting purposes (section 195F Crimes Act 1958) x5.

The Mill Park men and the South Morang man will appear at Heidelberg Magistrates’ Court on 15th September, while the Sale man will appear at Sale Magistrates’ Court on 15th September.

Image of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) tournament. Source Wikipedia