Court orders S$1.25mil to be confiscated from man who ran illegal 4D and Toto operation

SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): A confiscation order of about S$1.25 million has been issued against a man who was sentenced in 2020 to four years and 12 months' jail and fined $500,000 for running an illegal 4D and Toto operation.

The police said on Friday (Aug 12) that the High Court issued the order against Ow Choon Bok, 45, on July 27, after a further probe into his financial affairs was conducted. The wealth is believed to be his benefits from criminal conduct.

Ow was arrested with 48 others in an operation by the Criminal Investigation Department against an organised crime group which operated 11 illegal online betting portals in 2016.

Investigations revealed that Ow had been managing his illegal 4D and Toto business since 2009. He oversaw the online betting accounts, which included the collection of 4D bets and settling of 4D monies, through an administrator account.

Ow also set up an operation centre overseas and recruited people for his operation.

On Dec 15, 2020, he was sentenced over providing a Singapore-based remote gambling service, receiving illegal 4D and Toto bets, transferring criminal benefits and being a member of an organised crime group, as well as offences related to an organised crime group.

After the sentencing, further investigations into his financial affairs found that he "accumulated unexplained wealth... over the years", and the amount was "disproportionate to his known sources of income", the police said on Friday.

Anyone convicted of a serious offence faces the possible confiscation of the benefits derived from criminal conduct.