2 cops, foreigners held in Riga casino scam

RIGA, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Two Latvian police officers and several foreign nationals have been detained for organizing a gambling scam which involved tampering with slot machines in the capital city's casinos, law enforcement authorities informed Monday.

The internal security office of the Latvian State Police in cooperation with Corruption Prevention Bureau has detained several people suspected of involvement in the scam, including Russian and Ukrainian nationals, and two officers from the Riga regional police department.

Representatives of the internal security office informed that the suspects are believed to have been illegally manipulating gambling machines. It is thought that they used special software to change the outcome of games in their favor and win significant amounts of money.

The suspects were arrested immediately after they had collected their prize money.

The two cops were off duty when they were arrested.

All the suspects detained in connection with the gambling scam remain in custody.

A criminal investigation has been launched into the organized fraud. Investigators said they would also probe the suspects' possible connection with other crimes. Enditem