KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: The federal police headquarters has set up a task force to crack down on bookmakers ahead of the European Football Championships, when total bets placed in Malaysia are expected to hit the RM1 billion (S$4.4 million) mark.

Senior federal police officers said the team would include personnel from the Criminal Investigation Department and Commercial Crime Investigation Department.

"Officers from the district and state secret society, gaming and anti-vice divisions will also be roped in," a source said.

In the past, the betting was carried out using slips of paper. These days, it is done online. Hong Kong-based syndicates are reported to have set up more than 15 websites.

Police have discovered numerous illegal football betting rings in the country reportedly backed by Singapore and Hong Kong nationals.

Betting on matches in the English Premier League and other major European leagues has netted these foreign syndicates billions of ringgit over the course of 10 months -- the length of an average season.

Police have joined forces with computer forensic experts to bring the fight to the syndicates on the Internet.

The source said local bookies were expected to handle bets totalling RM1 billion for the Euro 2008 matches.

This is based on the opening match of the 2006 World Cup in Germany between the host nation and Costa Rica, which saw local punters putting down between RM50 million and RM60 million.

"The final between Italy and France attracted about RM150 million," the source said.

The bets will increase once a football tournament reaches the knockout stage.

High-profile matches also draw heavy betting in the early stages.

The source said the task force would liaise with police in other countries via Interpol.

"Emphasis will be placed on co-operating with our counterparts in Hong Kong as preliminary investigations revealed that local bookies are working with betting syndicates from there," the source said.

"All state contingents have been directed to intensify efforts to crack down on illegal bookies."

On Wednesday, Interpol announced it planned to launch a second operation to curb illegal soccer gambling in Asia following last year's success which netted US$680 million worth of illegal bets worldwide.

Interpol secretary-general Ronald K. Noble said more countries would be involved in the second "Operation Soga", short for soccer gambling, which was now in the planning stage to check one of the most rampant organised crimes in the region.

The first operation was launched last year involving Australia, China, Hong Kong, Macao, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

It resulted in more than 430 arrests and 272 underground gambling dens being shut down.