The announcement was made on July 7 by the city's Criminal Police Division, which said the operation was carried out under the Ministry of Public Security's nationwide crackdown on football gambling during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Investigators identified one of the networks as being led by Huynh Le Thanh Long and several accomplices. The syndicate operated through a sophisticated, multi-tiered structure, prompting police to launch a dedicated investigation in early June.
The Criminal Police Division, in coordination with Lam Dong Provincial Police and law enforcement agencies in several other localities, simultaneously deployed officers to summon and investigate individuals linked to the operation on June 29.
Preliminary findings showed that the suspects obtained "Master" betting accounts from operators based in Cambodia before dividing them into multiple "Agent" and "Member" accounts. These accounts were then distributed to intermediaries and gamblers in Ho Chi Minh City and several other provinces, allowing participants to place bets through online gambling platforms.
Authorities determined that from October 2025 until the syndicates were uncovered, the two networks facilitated gambling transactions totaling more than VND3.5 trillion.
During the investigation, police detained 150 individuals connected to the case. To date, investigators have formally filed criminal charges against 85 suspects, including 21 accused of organizing illegal gambling operations and 64 charged with participating in illegal gambling. The investigation remains ongoing as authorities work to identify and prosecute additional suspects in accordance with Vietnamese law.
Ho Chi Minh City Police urged the public to refrain from participating in gambling or football betting in any form and called on citizens to promptly report any suspected gambling activities to law enforcement authorities to support ongoing crime prevention and enforcement efforts.
