Federal police secretary Noorsiah Saaduddin said all those arrested were either bookies or punters and the case is being investigated under the Betting Act 1953 and the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953.

She added that during the period, 530 investigation papers had been opened, with 202 being acted upon and 87 others charged and convicted.

Noorsiah said Selangor had the most number of arrests with 179, followed by Kuala Lumpur (142), Johor (59), Negeri Sembilan (57), Sarawak (54), Penang (43), Sabah (41), Kedah (32), Melaka (27), Pahang (18), Perak (17), Terengganu (11), Perlis (six), and Kelantan (4).

She said police also seized various items, including RM22.3 million in credit value from betting software, RM518,563 in cash, mobile phones (817), sim cards (386), desktop PCs (74), and laptops (47).

“The police hope that the public can channel information on gambling activities through the Ops Soga IX WhatsApp hotline at 016-577-3477,” she said in a statement today.