Authorities shut down an unlicensed online gambling venture being run by 63 Chinese nationals out of a Poipet City karaoke parlor, an Interior Ministry official said on Wednesday.
The business was ordered to close on Monday because it did not have all the proper documents, said Seang Sen, director of the Interior Ministry’s central security department.
“They have a permission letter for the online casino business from the government, but they have not yet received a permission letter from the Finance Ministry,” he said.
None of the 63 workers were arrested because they had proper visas, Mr. Sen said. He declined to name the business or elaborate on its operations, but suggested the shutdown was temporary, even though the Finance Ministry issued a directive in January requiring all online gambling operations to be run in conjunction with casinos.
“We have instructed them to contact the Finance Ministry to get a license, and we will allow them to reopen as soon as they get sufficient legal documents,” Mr. Sen said.
He said the karaoke parlor owner had rented part of the property to a Chinese businessman.
