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Much controversy arose late Tuesday following news released by Gambling911.com that law enforcement allegedly confiscated relief supplies for victims of Typhoon Yolanda during a 5-hour raid of online gambling firm Bodog’s Manila, Philippines office last week.
Photos obtained exclusively by Gambling911.com show the Bodog office before it was raided, then the ransacked office immediately following the raid.
According to local reports, police claim Bodog’s Manila operation used "dummy" business process outsourcing firms as fronts to send and receive monies from would-be online gamblers. Bodog officials claim these accusations are politically motivated after it was reported, primarily on the Gambling911.com website, that a former politician may have attempted to buy casino source code from the company on the black market.
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Seen here: Local employees thrilled to be doing their part to help with Typhoon Yolanda relief effots prior to authorities allegedly running off with supplies last Thursday.
The company’s founder, Calvin Ayre, helped raise funds for Yolanda relief, offering to match up to $1 million. Authorities had hoped to capture Ayre during last week’s raid according to local reports, however, G911 has been told he no longer travels to the Philippines.
"Sometimes I hate my country and how corrupt it can be, it is very embarrassing," stated one Bodog Nation employee that did not want to be identified out of fear for their safety. "Our managers ordered food for the staff, the police kept trying to eat it when we were not looking. It was clear that they were getting restless and hungry while keeping all of us locked down. When we realized they were stealing our pizza, we moved it so they could not find it in order to insure other employees were able to eat. We had no idea how long they were going to keep us there and were threatening us with being held for 36 hours. As soon as the pizza was gone, they started eating the food we had stocked up over the past week from our Hurricane Yolanda disaster relief. They did not eat that much food at our office but I just thought this was rude, then I found out they actually took all of the aid we worked so hard at collecting after the raid. ALL OF IT! I understand you want to take the computers but why steal something earmarked for the poor Filipinos suffering in Tacloban. Shameful."
Because so many of Bodog’s customer service computers were confiscated during last week’s raid, this has resulted in a temporary reduction in service until such items are replaced, a company spokesperson tells Gambling911.com. Some 500 computers were removed from the office, our sources suggest. Authorities turned the office back over to company attorneys on Sunday. As such, IT officers are working around the clock to replace deleted supplies and to have employees functioning accordingly.
“Things should improve over the coming days,” that source tells us. “They have to get new computers, add software, and add to company directory, among other things.”
- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com
