The complaints filed by land-based casinos and the Polla Chilena de Beneficencia against the online betting platforms (PAL) will be filed by the Public Ministry as there is not enough evidence to file charges for the commission of a criminal offense.
That is the main consequence of the decision adopted by the Public Ministry, not to persevere in the investigation process related to these criminal actions filed by the land-based casinos and by the Polla Chilena de Beneficencia, after a series of proceedings that extended for almost two years.
The consulting lawyer for the online betting platforms Betano, Betsson, BetWarrior, Coolbet and Latamwin, Carlos Baeza, highlighted “the importance of this decision of the Public Ministry, the only authority empowered by law to determine the criteria for criminal prosecution with general scope for the whole country."
“This marks a significant milestone for the operation of online betting platforms in the country, confirming our legality from a criminal point of view, something that has already been supported in several legal reports,” he added.
Betting houses
It is worth mentioning that the Supreme Court, a few days ago, confirmed the ruling of the Court of Appeals of Santiago that declared inadmissible a protection appeal filed by the National Association of Professional Football (ANFP), against the resolution of the Undersecretariat of Justice to terminate its contract with betting houses.
In a brief resolution, the Third Chamber of the Chile’s highest court ratified the decision of the capital court, in the midst of the controversy over the link that the governing body of Chilean football had with Betsson.
Last September, the ANFP presented the protection appeal, trying to annul what was ordered by the Ministry of Justice, in the midst of the controversy over legality with betting houses.
The above, because the portfolio led by Luis Cordero urged the Quilín headquarters to “terminate” its contracts with casinos after the Superintendency declared companies that operate from abroad illegal.
Public Ministry will end complaints process against online betting platforms
In the same way, the lawyer indicated that the Public Ministry, in its capacity as an autonomous and independent body, has the exclusive power to decide whether to accuse or file the records brought to its attention, and this is a decision that cannot be subject to review or questioning by any court.
Baeza stated that “after an investigation of almost two years, with more than 1,600 pages of detailed information on companies, names of representatives, addresses and owners of online betting platforms duly identified in the investigative folder, the Public Ministry has determined that the requirements to justify the accusation of a criminal offense are not met, which has led to the decision to archive the records. This shows that our operation today does not constitute any illegal activity.”
The legal expert added that “the decision of the Public Ministry provides peace of mind to all those who are linked to online betting platforms, because it sets a precedent with respect to the rest of other authorities that, without having any power, have questioned and threatened users of committing a crime, as well as those who advertise or promote them. Online betting is not prohibited in our legislation and this decision confirms it from a criminal point of view.”
“This decision should motivate other authorities who, without any legal authority, have classified online betting as a crime, to rectify their opinions and statements and fall within the scope of their own powers. This after the constant and unfounded threats, not only from the spokespersons of the casino companies and La Polla, but from government authorities; both the users of the platforms and the people related to this industry, accusing them of committing a crime and acting contrary to the law,” Baeza concluded.
Baeza concluded by highlighting that this milestone "will contribute to the discussion that is currently taking place in Congress, since these arguments of illegality - which are now obsolete - have tried to be imposed by third parties to condition the development of the industry." When asked if they will issue statements on this issue, for now the Prosecutor's Office will not comment.
Source: GMB
