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EXCLUSIVE: THE GREAT TV STING
Shows hit by betting scam
By Andy Lines

A BETTING scam that raked in a fortune from reality TV shows like the X Factor has been smashed.

Investigators swooped after becoming suspicious of a string of huge wagers being put on winners minutes before they were announced live on television.

It is believed punters were tipped off by text from a BT worker with access to phone vote totals for the programmes.

A five-man gang scooped £105,000 in fraudulent wagers with unsuspecting online firm Betfair.

One friend of the mob said: "The guys knew they could not lose. It is corrupt. At first it was small amounts but they were caught out when they got greedier."

Betfair called police after busting the sting, which also involved shows such as Strictly Come Dancing and Hell's Kitchen. The gang made £30,000 on the X Factor alone with bets on contestants battling it out before judges Simon Cowell and Sharon Osbourne.

A Betfair spokesman said: "We have no hesitation contacting police when people may be betting fraudulently."

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BOGUS punters at the centre of a TV betting sting targeted a string of popular reality shows in a bid to become rich.

The gang of five placed big money wagers on favourites including the X Factor, I'm a Celebrity, Strictly Come Dancing, Big Brother and Celebrity Big Brother after a member on the inside leaked details of telephone vote winners.

They also raked in cash from Strictly Dance Fever, The Farm, Hit Me One More Time, Hell's Kitchen and Celebrity Fame Academy.

But their scam was busted after vigilant staff at online firm Betfair grew suspicious of the gang's method of putting bets on minutes before the winners were revealed on TV.

It is thought a BT employee who had access to the phone line results was one of the five who passed on the information by text to the others.

They immediately placed bets worth thousands of pounds.

After a probe, Betfair investigators suspended the men's accounts, froze £45,000 of the £105,000 they made and alerted police. The other £60,000 had already been withdrawn.

A friend of the gang said last night: "These guys have been doing this for ages.

"They got the telephone voting numbers before they were publicised on air. So they all weighed in and have made a fortune.

"At first it was small amounts but they got caught out when they started getting greedier.

"If they kept the bet amounts lower they would have remained under the radar. But they just couldn't resist filling their boots. Eventually they were betting thousands. But a pattern started to emerge.

"The bets were being made in a similar fashion at a similar time each week. These guys knew for a fact, 100 per cent, they could not lose.

"That is wrong and corrupt. It is unfair on all the other X Factor fans having a flutter."

The gang scooped £30,000 on the X Factor bets alone. Tens of thousands of pounds were also made from Strictly Come Dancing, I'm a Celebrity - starring Aussie actress Kimberly Davies - and Hell's Kitchen. The wagers were made from computers in the London area.

One of the gang was furious when Betfair suspended his account and insisted to friends he won the cash "fair and square".

A spokesman for the London-based firm said: "We take very seriously the integrity of betting on our markets and have no hesitation contacting police when people may be betting fraudulently."

The gang, all in their early 30s, are believed to be highly-educated. Two have degrees from Leicester's De Montfort University.

Betfair is at the centre of an explosion in the amount of cash gambled on reality TV shows. More than £30million has been wagered this year alone via the online site. By last night it had received almost £1million for the X Factor.

The shows phone lines are supplied by BT but operated by service provider Harvest Media.

www.mirror.co.uk