Two men face up to ten years in prison for allegedly engaging in suspicious betting activity in an esports league where matches were thrown.
The Sporting Integrity Intelligence Unit of Victoria Police launched an investigation after receiving information from a betting agency about activity linked to several League of Legends Pro League matches on June 8, 2021.
It is claimed that players planned to throw matches, with several games allegedly impacted.
A 25-year-old man from Kingsville has been charged with using corrupt conduct information for betting purposes.
A 25-year-old man from Brooklyn was also charged with engaging in conduct that corrupts or would corrupt a betting outcome of an event or contingency.
Both of these offenses are punishable by up to ten years in prison.
On September 26, the pair will appear in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court.
Detective acting superintendent Wayne Woltsche stated that they have previously investigated suspicious esports activity and that it will continue to be a focus.
“Esports is an emerging sporting industry that is only growing in popularity,” he said. “With that comes an increase not only in those wanting to bet on outcomes but also in those willing to try and exploit the systems for their gain.”
“We’ve built strong relationships with various esports stakeholders and betting companies, and we’ll continue to collaborate to target any suspicious activity.”
“People must understand that these are serious criminal offenses with serious penalties, and these charges demonstrate that we will take any suspicious activity reports seriously.”
The police investigation is still ongoing.
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