Operation “Conto da Sorte” has been launched by Brazilian authorities in a sweeping cross-state crackdown on an alleged illegal gambling network.
The Federal Revenue Service sanctioned the investigation, which involves three Public Prosecutor Offices and local police forces across the states of Pernambuco, São Paulo, and Ceará.
Authorities have so far executed 14 search warrants across the three states, targeting six individuals and seven properties allegedly linked to a network of 37 companies.
Those companies are accused of processing billions of reals through illicit gambling operations, raising serious concerns about the scale of financial crime in Brazil’s betting sector.
Seizures made during the raids include passports, documents, electronic devices, firearms, and around R$30,000 in cash, with an additional R$145 million worth of assets also collected.
Many of the companies targeted were reportedly registered under so-called straw owners, described as socially weak individuals either receiving benefits or financially incapable of running a business.
This arrangement allegedly allowed criminals to exercise actual financial control and move large sums through a chain of shell companies registered to nonexistent addresses.
Initial suspicions were raised by Brazil’s Secretariat of Prizes and Bets, the federal gambling regulator established under the Ministry of Finance to oversee the country’s newly launched online betting market.
The regulator had flagged concerns over LOTSERIDÓ, an official municipal lottery agency created in July 2024 by the municipality of Bodó, which had been issuing gambling licenses despite having no legal authority to do so.
Only the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets holds the power to issue gambling licenses at the federal level, making LOTSERIDÓ’s actions a significant breach of local regulations.
Brazil’s Supreme Court subsequently revoked LOTSERIDÓ’s licence authorisations, and the agency was closed in October 2025, but companies it had authorised have reportedly continued to operate without proper federal approval.
Official Bodó economic activity records show R$4.6 billion flowing through the accounts of at least one company, with authorities suggesting the true total could be considerably higher.
Minister of Finance Dario Durigan stated: “There was a movement, at first, of R$50bn, due to these 37 companies that operated illegally in the country, and these 14 search and seizure warrants will allow us to determine the exact amounts that will be announced very soon.”
No arrests have been made at this stage, according to local outlet Jornal, though the investigation remains active across all three states.
The operation arrives at a politically sensitive moment, with President Lula da Silva facing growing pressure over the future of Brazil’s Bets regime, which he launched in January 2025 and which now faces calls for either major reform or complete repeal.
