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In the Ministry of Finance’s view, this ended “any institutional ambiguity” over who should oversee the DRC’s gambling industry.
“The Ministry of Finance reaffirms its determination to drive the reform of the gambling and games of chance sector in accordance with government directives, while upholding legal certainty for operators, transparency in activities and the protection of the Public Treasury’s interests,” said the press release, signed by Alain Malata Kafunda, the chief of staff to the DRC minister of finance.
The press release also warned operators against complying with any payment requests from departments that aren’t legally authorised to do so.
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Sentencing for Lee, Lee and Hind is set for 23 October 2026 at Southwark Crown Court. Williams will be sentenced at a later date. The Gambling Commission has said trials for the remaining ten defendants will take place in September 2027 and January 2028.
The Commission launched its investigation into various reports of insider betting on the election date in June 2024 after Ladbrokes flagged a bet placed by Williams, who was recorded as a politically exposed person.
Further bets flagged by operators involved other politically sensitive individuals, including Metropolitan Police officers and political advisers. The Commission charged 15 people total in April 2025. Four have now pleaded guilty.
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Investigators said cellphone tracking ultimately led them to the suspects.
Early Monday, Sept. 14, police tracked phones linked to the men to BB’s B.F.E. Bar & Grill in Latham, roughly 25 miles northwest of Decatur.
The Logan County Sheriff’s Office responded to check the venue and confirmed a break-in: power to the building had been cut, an ATM opened, and multiple video gaming terminals smashed and emptied of cash, according to affidavits.
