Italian police celebrate busting an illegal syndicate

No surprises here. A Mafia boss sent to jail went back to his old ways when he got out. Nothing too newsworthy there, but the facts of article leave a bit to be desired...

Italian police broke up major mafia clan

Italian police have broken up a major mafia clan, issuing 83 arrest warrants and seizing businesses, land, race horses and a London-based online betting company, officials said Tuesday.

.....

The assets seized included the sporting goods empire "Sport&More" as well as the London-based Paradise Bet, described by police as one of the most important British online betting sites.

It would be a mighty long list if Paradise Bet were to ever have featured on a list of important British betting sites, and ignoring that rather large extension of the truth, the company hasn't existed for several years!

ParadiseBet ceased operations in 2006 and became the much-disliked Bet1128.

If they were referring to 1128, who are believed to be Italian-owned, they are a Maltese minnow anyway. But never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

UPDATE 23/12:

The UK Gambling Commission has suspended the licence of Paradise Bet, but Bet1128.com appears to still be running.. so not sure who it actually applies to??

Comments

It's all gone Pete Tong at Betfair!

The Christmas Hurdle from Leopardstown, a good Grade 2 race during the holiday period. But now it will go into history as the race which brought Betfair down. Over £21m at odds of 29 available on Voler La Vedette in-running - that's a potential liability of over £500m. You might think that's a bit suspicious, something's fishy, especially with the horse starting at a Betfair SP of 2.96. Well, this wasn't a horse being stopped by a jockey either - the bloody horse won! Look at what was matched at 29. Split that in half and multiply by 28 for the actual liability for the layer(s). (Matched amounts always shown as double the backers' stake, never counts the layers' risk). There's no way a Betfair client would have £600m+ in their account. Maybe £20 or even £50m from the massive syndicates who regard(ed) Betfair as safer than any bank, but not £600m. So the error has to be something technical. However, rumour has it, a helpdesk reply (not gospel, natur

lay the field - my favourite racing strategy

Dabbling with laying the field in-running at various prices today, not just one price, but several in the same race. Got several matched in the previous race at Brighton, then this race came along at Nottingham. Such a long straight at Nottingham makes punters often over-react and think the finish line is closer than it actually is. As you can see by the number of bets matched, there was plenty of volatility in this in-play market. It's rare you'll get a complete wipe-out with one horse getting matched at all levels, but it can happen, so don't give yourself too much risk...

Wimbledon preview - women

Unfortunately this year I don't have the time to write comprehensive Slam previews anymore so I'll sum this one up pretty quickly - it's all about Serena. 1 - Serena Williams. In incredible form. Since bombing out in R1 of the French Open last year, she has lost just three times - to Kerber (Cincinnati QF), to Stephens (Aus Open QF) and to Azarenka (Doha final). She has won three of the last four Wimbledon finals plus the Olympic gold last year where she dropped just 17 games in six rounds, against opponents which included four former world #1s. All that considered though, I can't have her at 1/2 (1.50) on Betfair. She just has to be opposed. I can't put a finger on who is going to beat her, but I have to side with her prospective opponents. If you want a smokey to put some small change on, try Maria Kirilenko. Her record in the Slam isn't so great but it has been improving - a best result of R4 last year beaten by finalist Radwanska 7-5 in the third, and

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