The Mexican government has temporarily suspended 13 casinos. Authorities detected an irregular financial scheme connected to online gambling. A federal investigation uncovered a network of money movements suggesting possible breaches of anti-money laundering rules.
Reflecting growing cross-border cooperation on financial integrity in the gaming industry, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and its FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) supported the operation.
On the same day, U.S. FinCEN identified 10 casinos in Sinaloa, Baja California, and Tabasco for alleged money laundering linked to the Sinaloa Cartel. It also cut their access to the U.S. financial system.
Casinos connected to Grupo Salinas were suspended as part of the anti-money laundering operation. Online betting companies bet365 and Betano have had their platform access restricted since last Thursday for operating in Mexico under the corporate names Ganadora Azteca and Operadora Ganadora TV Azteca.
Betano issued a statement saying that all customer balances are fully protected.
According to the digital casino, it was notified by the Ministry of the Interior or Segob recently about the temporary suspension of online operations for the website Betano.mx.
Mexican authorities found suspicious patterns at the suspended casinos. These included using personal data obtained through deception or identity theft to channel funds into both physical and online gambling.
Investigators say operators connected to the casinos used prepaid cards, digital codes, and transfers of unverified origin. They also recorded winnings that were never paid to the supposed players.
Authorities transferred part of the funds to jurisdictions such as Malta, Panama, Romania, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States. They then returned the money to Mexico as apparently legitimate income.
While continuing to analyze structures designed to evade tax obligations, the federal administration froze the related accounts.
