Police statistics show that online gambling among youths rose exponentially during the Covid-19 pandemic, Sarawak Youth and Sports Minister Abdul Karim Hamzah said.

For the whole of last year, police had only chalked up 608 cases but in just the first eight months of this year, 1,292 cases were busted, he said.

Karim said the problem was not surprising given that youths have had to be cooped up indoors during the movement-control order (MCO) but added that the high numbers were alarming.

“With nothing much to do, they go online and gamble,” he told reporters after a meeting on post-Covid-19 youth development programmes in Kuching today.

Police shared their statistics at the meeting.

Karim said crimes perpetrated by youths, particularly those who lost their job due to the pandemic, had also risen slightly. – September 9, 2020.