{"id":263940,"date":"2023-03-13T09:15:43","date_gmt":"2023-03-13T14:15:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=263940"},"modified":"2023-03-17T13:16:58","modified_gmt":"2023-03-17T18:16:58","slug":"local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/","title":{"rendered":"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination"},"content":{"rendered":"

Local lotteries have been banned in the Philippines<\/a> after a lottery vendor was murdered last month and other lottery vendors continue to face threats.<\/p>\n

\"A
A sign welcomes visitors to Cotabato City, Philippines. The city is halting legal lottery sales as criminal gangs operating illegal lotteries threaten the area. (Image: Langyaw)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On Monday, the mayor of Cotabato City, Bruce Matabalao, ordered the immediate halt of Small-Time Lotteries (STLs), according to local media outlets. This comes on the heels of concerns over increasing threats local STL vendors in the city are receiving.<\/p>\n

\n

Almost a month ago, an unknown assailant shot and killed an STL vendor in cold blood. At the time, 24-year-old Rizia Mae Pardillo Ycot was manning an STL booth in the city. Ycot was shot in the head by an assailant while she stood outside her booth. She died on the scene.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Since then, more than two dozen vendors confirmed they have received threatening messages, leading Cotabato City police director Colonel Querubin Manalang to recommend Matabaloa take action.<\/p>\n

Vendors around the city and other locations have come together to inform the authorities that they are increasingly under threat by illegal gambling outfits. These are primarily led by organized crime factions operating autonomously in various areas of the Philippines.<\/p>\n

What are STLs?<\/h2>\n

STLs are legal lotteries authorized by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO). But it’s believed that criminal gangs, who run illegal gaming in the country, see these legal outlets as muscling in on their turf.<\/p>\n

But Cito Beltran, writing an opinion piece for The Philippine Star<\/em>, doesn\u2019t believe the criminal gangs are acting completely alone. In his estimation, they\u2019re receiving support<\/a> across all government ranks.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The STLs, he asserts, are nothing more than a legalized version of a numbers racket run by an illegal gambling operator. These operators, including illegal e-sabong<\/a> operators, continue to back \u201cmayors, local officials [and] police\u201d through financial support designed to help them gain office or stay in power.<\/p>\n

According to Beltran, one of these illegal operators \u201cis in cahoots with several mayors\u201d to keep the illegal numbers racket \u2013 jeuteng, as it\u2019s known locally \u2013 alive and well. Those politicians who aren\u2019t willing to play ball pay the price. That could be what happened to now-former Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo. Assailants shot and killed him at his home on March 4.<\/p>\n

Degamo only recently became governor, finally taking over after the former governor, Pryde Henry Teves, refused to leave office. Armed men reportedly took positions around Negros Oriental to support Teves following his loss to force Degamo out.<\/p>\n

Investigation Ongoing<\/h2>\n

The police are still looking for the assassin in Ycot\u2019s death. In the meantime, Matabalao is cutting off all lottery sales, even legal ones. He’s asked police to arrest anyone selling any numbers lottery until the authorities can figure out how to proceed.<\/p>\n

Authorities are still investigating and gathering clues but have said they have no solid motive in that case.<\/p>\n

Last Friday, police raided five provinces’ houses, seizing pistols, ammunition, and at least one grenade. It was the house of Arnolfo Teves, Pryde\u2019s older brother, himself a Philippine congressman.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The younger Teves has denied any wrongdoing but remains under investigation following the murder of three people in 2019. As of Monday morning, the older Teves hadn\u2019t given a statement. He\u2019s currently in the US undergoing medical treatment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Local lotteries have been banned in the Philippines after a lottery vendor was murdered last month and other lottery vendors continue to face threats. On Monday, the mayor of Cotabato City, Bruce Matabalao, ordered the immediate halt of Small-Time Lotteries (STLs), according to local media outlets. This comes on the heels of concerns over increasing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":263939,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[69069,13699],"tags":[81913,13701,13520],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFilipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination - Casino.org<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Local lotteries in the Philippines under fire following recent assassination of a lottery vendor and an increased threat by criminal gangs.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination - Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Local lotteries in the Philippines under fire following recent assassination of a lottery vendor and an increased threat by criminal gangs.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-03-13T14:15:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-03-17T18:16:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"545\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Erik Gibbs\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Erik Gibbs\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/\",\"name\":\"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination - Casino.org\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-13T14:15:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-03-17T18:16:58+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/21bf33e35290a1da9c572298dac6b7ca\"},\"description\":\"Local lotteries in the Philippines under fire following recent assassination of a lottery vendor and an increased threat by criminal gangs.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":545,\"caption\":\"A sign welcomes visitors to Cotabato City, Philippines. The city is halting legal lottery sales as criminal gangs operating illegal lotteries threaten the area. (Image: Langyaw)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"News\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Lottery\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/lottery\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/\",\"name\":\"Casino.org\",\"description\":\"Latest Casino and Gaming News\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/21bf33e35290a1da9c572298dac6b7ca\",\"name\":\"Erik Gibbs\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-13-96x96.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-13-96x96.png\",\"caption\":\"Erik Gibbs\"},\"description\":\"Erik Gibbs covers global gaming news for Casino.org. His scope includes Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia. Erik has covered gaming markets in Europe and Asia for the past six years. Erik joined Casino.org in November 2021. Erik has written for numerous gambling- and a handful of industry publications has quoted casino-related media outlets over the years and. He is always excited to bring a new perspective on what's happening in the gaming space. Erik enjoys following the global gaming industry, paying particular attention to innovation and regulation. Originally from the US, Erik has spent extensive time living in various countries across the globe. He enjoys anything that has to do with the outdoors and exploration, although he readily admits that he would have no trouble spending all day fishing on a boat. He currently resides in Spain. Contact Erik at erik.gibbs@casino.org.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/author\/erik-gibbs\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination - Casino.org","description":"Local lotteries in the Philippines under fire following recent assassination of a lottery vendor and an increased threat by criminal gangs.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination - Casino.org","og_description":"Local lotteries in the Philippines under fire following recent assassination of a lottery vendor and an increased threat by criminal gangs.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/","og_site_name":"Casino.org","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews","article_published_time":"2023-03-13T14:15:43+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-03-17T18:16:58+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":545,"url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Erik Gibbs","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@Casino_Org","twitter_site":"@Casino_Org","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Erik Gibbs","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/","name":"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination - Casino.org","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg","datePublished":"2023-03-13T14:15:43+00:00","dateModified":"2023-03-17T18:16:58+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/21bf33e35290a1da9c572298dac6b7ca"},"description":"Local lotteries in the Philippines under fire following recent assassination of a lottery vendor and an increased threat by criminal gangs.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/A-sign-welcomes-visitors-to-Cotabato-City-Philippines.jpg","width":1000,"height":545,"caption":"A sign welcomes visitors to Cotabato City, Philippines. The city is halting legal lottery sales as criminal gangs operating illegal lotteries threaten the area. (Image: Langyaw)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/local-lotteries-in-the-philippines-under-fire-following-recent-assassination\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Lottery","item":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/lottery\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Filipino Lotteries Under Fire Following Recent Assassination"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/","name":"Casino.org","description":"Latest Casino and Gaming News","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/21bf33e35290a1da9c572298dac6b7ca","name":"Erik Gibbs","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-13-96x96.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-13-96x96.png","caption":"Erik Gibbs"},"description":"Erik Gibbs covers global gaming news for Casino.org. His scope includes Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia. Erik has covered gaming markets in Europe and Asia for the past six years. Erik joined Casino.org in November 2021. Erik has written for numerous gambling- and a handful of industry publications has quoted casino-related media outlets over the years and. He is always excited to bring a new perspective on what's happening in the gaming space. Erik enjoys following the global gaming industry, paying particular attention to innovation and regulation. Originally from the US, Erik has spent extensive time living in various countries across the globe. He enjoys anything that has to do with the outdoors and exploration, although he readily admits that he would have no trouble spending all day fishing on a boat. He currently resides in Spain. Contact Erik at erik.gibbs@casino.org.","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/author\/erik-gibbs\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263940"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=263940"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263940\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/263939"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=263940"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=263940"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=263940"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}