Limpopo: An Illegal Gambling Site Posing as an Internet Café
On 13 October 2026 the Limpopo Gambling Board, the police, Home Affairs and SARS raided a site in Botlokwa that, the board says, was offering gambling without a licence under the guise of an internet café. Two people were arrested.
On this page
What the board reported
The Limpopo Gambling Board (LGB) reported on its website (on its gallery page, updated on 14 October 2026) that, together with the South African Police Service, the Department of Home Affairs (Immigration Unit) and the South African Revenue Service, it "conducted a joint operation on 13 Oct 2026 at Skhokho Village within the Botlokwa policing area."
In the board's words, "an illegal gambling site operating under the guise of an internet café was identified at Lebeko Mini Plaza, the site was allegedly providing gambling activities to members of the public without the required gambling licence." Two suspects were arrested, one South African and one Zimbabwean national.
What was confiscated
As the Limpopo Gambling Board lists it.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Computer screens | 27 |
| Computer boxes | 19 |
| Cash | R1,070.00 |
| Fake certificates | 3 |
What it means for you as a player
The board "urges members of the public not to participate in illegal gambling activities or support unlicensed gambling operators." A site without a licence answers to no board: if it does not pay out, there is nobody to complain to. The fake certificates in the list show that a certificate on its own proves nothing.
The same check works online and on the street: a licensed bookmaker names the provincial board that licensed it and its licence number, and you can look the number up in that board's register. Our licence check guide shows how, and every review on this site gives the licence the brand states.
Betting is for adults 18 and over. If gambling has stopped being fun, the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation helpline 0800 006 008 is free; our responsible gambling page lists more ways to get help.
Sources
- Limpopo Gambling Board, gallery page (updated 14 October 2026). “Two suspects arrested during joint operation against illegal gambling in Botlokwa”, lgb.org.za/gallery-8/, read on 15 October 2026: the operation, the arrests and the list of confiscated items.