Police said on Wednesday the Moscow Region's deputy prosecutor oversaw illegal gambling activities with suspected links to organized crime.
Investigators unearthed evidence indicating that criminal bosses paid for the overseas trips of Moscow Region Deputy Prosecutor Alexander Ignatenko and other officials in exchange for keeping their operations a secret.
Three people, including gambling boss Ivan Nazarov, and three police officers have been arrested and are facing up to 10 years in prison, a spokesman for the Russian chief investigator's office said.
Security forces raided the Moscow region police station on Wednesday after a tipoff from a member of the gambling ring.
"A man who came to Moscow region investigator's office said the criminal group headed by Nazarov has for two years been organizing illegal gambling," spokesman Vladimir Markin said.
On Tuesday, investigators detained two police offices suspected of links to the Nazarov gang.
Illegal casinos have spread like wildfire across Russia since a law came into force in July 2009 banning gambling everywhere except in four remote zones.
MOSCOW, February 16 (RIA Novosti)
