Cambodia's Casino Inspections Uncover Fraud Networks Across Dozens of Licensed Sites
Cambodian authorities completed a full audit of the country's 195 licensed casinos and identified 72 facilities tied directly to online fraud operations, all within a coordinated twelve-month effort that ran from June 2025 through June 2026. The inspection campaign targeted scam centers tied to those casinos, producing a detailed report that Senior Minister Chhay Sinarith submitted to Prime Minister Hun Manet ahead of the 24 July 2026 Cabinet meeting.
Scale of the Operation and Key Findings
Teams raided 737 suspected centers while examining 28,500 separate locations across multiple provinces, and the resulting data showed that more than one-third of licensed casinos had allowed their premises or infrastructure to support online fraud schemes. Officials revoked or suspended licenses for dozens of operators, and the crackdown produced hundreds of court cases that continue to move through the judicial system. Over 21,100 foreign nationals faced deportation orders as part of the same enforcement wave, removing individuals who investigators linked to the scam centers operating behind casino façades.
Actions Taken Against Operators and Foreign Nationals
Authorities coordinated raids with license reviews so that any casino found hosting or enabling online fraud lost its operating rights immediately, while parallel investigations tracked money flows and server activity connected to those sites. The deportations focused on workers and organizers who had entered the country under various pretexts yet participated in the fraud networks, adn court filings now list hundreds of defendants charged with related offenses. Observers note that the combination of license actions and removals disrupted daily operations at multiple locations simultaneously, forcing remaining casinos to demonstrate compliance or face similar consequences.
Report Presentation and Government Response
Prime Minister Hun Manet received the compiled findings from Senior Minister Chhay Sinarith and characterized the document as an important milestone in efforts to improve the country's international standing. The report, presented during the July 2026 Cabinet session, outlined both the breadth of the inspections and the specific connections uncovered between licensed casinos and online fraud activities. Government statements emphasized that the one-year operation had produced measurable results in the form of closed centers, revoked licenses, and completed deportations, all documented for further regulatory follow-up.
Broader Context of the Crackdown Timeline
The initiative began in June 2025 with initial intelligence gathering and escalated through repeated site visits, culminating in the June 2026 summary that fed directly into the Cabinet briefing one month later. Throughout the period, enforcement teams maintained pressure on both physical scam centers and the digital infrastructure they relied upon, while casino operators underwent repeated compliance checks. The resulting statistics, including the 72 implicated casinos out of 195 inspected, illustrate the extent of the overlap between legitimate gambling licenses and fraudulent online operations that authorities targeted.
Conclusion
The completed inspection report now serves as the official record of actions taken between June 2025 and June 2026, with ongoing court proceedings and license reviews expected to extend the impact of the campaign. Data compiled during the operation continues to guide additional enforcement steps, and the numbers of raided centers, inspected sites, deportations, and revoked licenses remain central reference points for tracking progress.