As the world of esports gets bigger and bigger, the punishments for trying to upset the system are also getting more and more serious – something that a group of gamers have just discovered first-hand.
Six Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players have been arrested by detectives from the Sporting Integrity Intelligence Unit and the Organized Crime Intelligence Unit for “suspicious betting activity” related to professional gaming and esports.
The six individuals, who’ve been arrested in Australia, now face up to ten years in jail after a betting agency alerted police to their allegedly suspicious activity.
The gamers have been accused of purposely throwing matches while having money betted on the outcome of the games. It’s believed that the team did this in as many as 20 CS:GO matches [via TheGamer].
All six of the players who are suspected of the crime have been interviewed by the relevant authorities. Though they’ve now been released, the investigations are ongoing, meaning the team could still be facing a jail sentence should they be found guilty.
Speaking about the increase in betting and fraud in the world of esports, Assistant Commissioner Neil Paterson explains: “Esports is really an emerging sporting industry and with that will come the demand for betting availability on the outcomes of tournaments and matches.”
With such huge prize pools up for grabs for esports matches include Dota 2 and Fortnite, it’s easy to see why some people are quick to forget that crime doesn’t pay.
Dota 2 officially now has the largest top cash prize in the entire history of esports, coming in at an eye-watering $33 million.
The prize is so huge thanks to it being the International, in which a battle pass system is used to unlock more content for players. The more money players fork out for Dota 2 battle passes, the bigger the International prize pool gets, as a portion of every dollar spent on the Dota 2’s “Compendium” is added to The International’s pool.
Featured Image Credit: Valve