Malaysian police detained five suspects, including two Singaporeans, suspected of running an illegal lottery syndicate in the southern state of Johor, news reports said Thursday.
The suspects - three women and two men, aged 30 to 47 - were arrested when police conducted a raid at a home late Tuesday after a tip-off, the Star daily reported.
The syndicate, believed to have been in operation for the past five months, raked in at least 6.4 million ringgit (1.9 million dollars) in bets monthly, acting state police chief Hisan Tun Hamzah said.
"The syndicate tried to hide its activities by moving to different premises, but we managed to track it down," Hisan said, adding that it catered to players from Malaysia and neighbouring countries, dpa reported.
Police also seized four computers, two laptops, five fax machines, nine mobile phones and 1,0353 ringgit as well as 4,800 Singapore dollars (3,200 US dollars), he said.