Ivan Rudyi, the chief of Ukraine’s gambling regulator, has been detained over his involvement with a Russian casino. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

Regulator arrested

The head of Ukraine’s gambling regulator has been detained by authorities on suspicion of supporting a Russian casino in the war-torn country.

Ivan Rudyi, who is head of Ukraine’s Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (CRGL), was arrested and accused of several crimes which may go far beyond the ties to the online casino.

Rudyi had been flagged for misconduct and potential corruption earlier in the year.

Media reports also suggest that over 100 grams of cocaine were found at Rudyi’s property during the search. Rudyi had been flagged for misconduct and potential corruption earlier in the year.

Corruption allegations

Rudyi has led the CRGL since its inception in 2020, when gambling was re-regulated in Ukraine after being banned in 2009.

During his oversight, there were many complaints about the growth of gambling addiction within the country in general, which led to proposals to disband the CRGL and implement stricter measures.

After Rudyi was flagged for potential misconduct and corruption earlier in the year, those plans accelerated, with the regulator due to be wound up by April 2025. Eventually, Rudyi was detained by the State Bureau of Investigation.

In the pre-trial investigation, he was accused of failing to revoke the license of a Russian online casino that was operating in Ukraine, despite the two countries being at war. In addition to a dereliction of his regulatory duties, Rudyi could face further charges of aiding an aggressor state. 

Military gambling problem

Earlier this year, Ukraine also implemented new measures aiming to control gambling within its military forces. 

A petition was created by one soldier who complained of the problems of increasing gambling addiction from unregulated sites among Ukrainian troops, which quickly gathered 25,000 signatures.

instead of being spent on the war effort, the donations were instead spent on online gambling

Another story concerned that of a Ukrainian medic who asked for donations for military supplies on his social media pages, raising over $50,000. However, instead of being spent on the war effort, the donations were instead spent on online gambling sites.

In response, the Ukrainian government hastily drafted a bill requiring online gambling sites to heavily restrict hours and deposit limits permitted for users while the war was ongoing. Yet considering the unregulated nature of many of the sites accessible to soldiers, the effectiveness of the legislation remains to be seen.