Bookie linked to ex-Pak cricketer Hameed held

The police have arrested a bookie who was running a cricket betting racket at the behest of Pakistan ex-Test cricketer Yasir Hameed.

Hameed had played 25 Tests and 65 one-day matches from 2003 till 2010. He was banned by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in 2010 after it was proved that he was a “key player” in a spot-fixing scandal involving international matches. The UK police had even arrested him once in London.

The accused bookie, Amandeep Singh, is in custody of the police. An FIR under Section 420, IPC, and the Gambling Act has been registered against him. Earlier, the police had come across evidence that he was in touch with the Pakistani cricketer through social media sites.

A manhunt has been launched to arrest his three accomplices. The police are not disclosing their names.

Hameed had catapulted to international fame by scoring a century in each innings in his debut Test match against Bangladesh in Karachi in 2003.

Amandeep’s arrest comes barely days after City police station SHO Karishma had taken bookie Manjit Singh into custody from his Sangalpura road house. During questioning, Manjit had spilled the beans and told the police about the connection between Amandeep, a Kalanaur resident, and Hameed.

The police said Amandeep had made “several other big claims” which they were in the process of verifying. When the police raided his residence yesterday, they recovered Rs 62,000, a laptop and several mobile phones.

Officers are maintaining a stoic silence on the issue. “If we put the disclosures made by the accused in the public domain then other bookies and fixers will get alerted. This development could hamper our investigations,” said an officer engaged in the investigations.

Cops maintain silence, ‘might hamper probe’

Police officers are maintaining a stoic silence on the issue. “If we put the disclosures made by the accused in the public domain then other bookies and fixers will get alerted. This development could hamper our investigations,” said an officer engaged in the investigations.