Prison wardens arrested for running online football gambling ring

The arrested are Vu Tri Tuyen, Pham Minh Tien and Nguyen Dinh Tuan, provincial prosecutors said.

It is believed that in July, Tuyen got acquainted with a man who manages gambling accounts on a soccer gambling website. Tuyen was given seven such accounts.

Tuyen handed over those accounts to fellow prison wardens Tien and Tuan. He used two other accounts to participate in online gambling himself.

When their illegal activities were busted, authorities determined that transactions made by the three wardens amounted to over VND17 billion. Their military titles were later revoked and they were arrested on October 17.

Gambling remains illegal in Vietnam outside a handful of casinos; and even there, Vietnamese citizens need to meet certain financial and other criteria to play.

Gambling and organizing related gaming activities in Vietnam carry fines of VND10-50 million ($430-2,150) and jail terms of three to seven years.