ARRESTS have been made in the West Midlands concerning betting offences, the Gambling Commission has reported. Three people at various locations within the Birmingham area were detained “in relation to allegations of match-fixing on a boxing fight.”
The fight in question has not yet been revealed, with the three alleged to have committed the offences under section 42 of the Gambling Act 2005.
Although the exact sections cited have not been disclosed, the Gambling Act states, “(1)A person commits an offence if he—(a)cheats at gambling, or (b)does anything for the purpose of enabling or assisting another person to cheat at gambling. (2)For the purposes of subsection (1) it is immaterial whether a person who cheats—(a)improves his chances of winning anything, or (b)wins anything.”
Boxing has never been able to shake off these kinds of connections, way back to the days of mob rule where ‘Blinky’ Palermo and Frankie Carbo dictated outcomes.
Following the recent Jake Paul-Mike Tyson bout in Texas, members of Paul’s team came out to deny fight-fixing allegations following spurious claims after the November bout.
Closer to home, a summer showdown between Aqib Fiaz and Kane Baker was curtailed due to unforeseen circumstances related to suspicious betting activity. Fiaz was later cleared of any wrongdoing by the BBBofC.
“After a lengthy investigation by the British Board of Control into allegations following my cancelled fight in June, I am pleased that the Board have considered all documentation and evidence supplied and reached the decision that no further action is required and have cleared me of any wrongdoings,” Fiaz stated at the time.
