Major Raid Against Berlin's Gambling Mafia Reveals Organized Crime Networks
Berlin police carry out extensive operation targeting illegal gambling operations linked to organized crime, seizing hundreds of machines and increasing enforcement efforts.
On April 2, 2025, Berlin police launched a significant operation against the city's gambling mafia, involving around 400 officers executing search warrants at 80 locations.
The main target of this coordinated effort is the Turkish mafia, known for its involvement in illegal gambling activities.
The police's action began in a cocktail bar located in the Schöneberg district, where two gambling machines were confiscated.
The owner of these machines had reportedly ignored multiple fines and failed to pay taxes, yet continued to operate the machines.
A total of 160 gambling machines were seized across different locations during the raid, which was organized in collaboration with Berlin's district authorities, the Senate Department for Justice and Consumer Protection, and the public prosecutor's office.
Present at the scene was Berlin's Justice Senator Felor Badenberg, who is under police protection due to threats linked to her role in combating organized crime.
Badenberg, a legal scholar and former vice president of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, aims to enhance the fight against organized crime by targeting the financial incentives that drive these operations.
She emphasized, "Money is the motor of organized crime."
Badenberg outlined her plans to increase pressure on criminal clans, focusing on identifying illegal gains more swiftly during business inspections.
The focal points of these inspections include the sale of illegal e-cigarettes and gambling machines, which are seen as extensions of the traditional illicit activities of organized crime such as drug trafficking, arms smuggling, and burglary.
To strengthen enforcement, Badenberg has initiated a model project designed to better penalize regulatory offenses and recover illegal profits more effectively.
This new approach shifts the emphasis from issuing fines to implementing confiscation orders.
The latter aim to capture total illicit gains from operations, contrasting with fines, which allow offenders to deduct various operational costs.
According to Badenberg, since the launch of this model project, confiscation orders have successfully recovered €172,500, with an additional €310,000 currently in court proceedings and further orders worth €2 million being prepared by regulatory authorities.
She stated that all twelve districts in Berlin will collaborate with this initiative.
The challenges faced by authorities are illustrated by ongoing difficulties in seizing properties linked to organized crime, notably the properties associated with the Remmo clan, totaling 77 in number.
Despite the General Prosecutor's Office seizing these properties in July 2018, legal proceedings are still ongoing, and only two properties have been definitively confiscated so far.
In February 2025, a cooperative platform focusing on organized crime with an emphasis on profit confiscation-related offenses began operations, coordinating efforts among various stakeholders including district mayors, officials from regulatory offices, and prosecutors.
The participation of the State Criminal Police Office and customs authorities is expected where necessary, to optimize future operations.
Badenberg highlighted the establishment of a new office within her administration aimed at acting as a liaison for district authorities, providing legal insight, and organizing inter-agency meetings, in hopes of undermining the financial structures of organized crime networks.
The economic damage caused by organized crime in Germany has escalated from €540 million in 2014 to an estimated €2.7 billion in 2023, significantly driven by unpaid taxes and fees.
In Berlin alone, the economic impact of organized crime reached approximately €57 million in 2023. Furthermore, criminal organizations have seen their profits through illicit activities double from €335 million in 2014 to €1 billion in 2023, with Berlin accounting for €86.4 million of this total.
The police union has expressed grave concern over the surge in illegal gambling-related offenses, with recorded cases increasing tenfold from 555 in 2016 to 5281 in 2023, and projections indicating 6247 cases for 2024. Critics, including police representatives, stress the ineffectiveness of current penalties, urging for enhanced measures, including the potential classification of illegal gambling as a serious offense under criminal law.
The main target of this coordinated effort is the Turkish mafia, known for its involvement in illegal gambling activities.
The police's action began in a cocktail bar located in the Schöneberg district, where two gambling machines were confiscated.
The owner of these machines had reportedly ignored multiple fines and failed to pay taxes, yet continued to operate the machines.
A total of 160 gambling machines were seized across different locations during the raid, which was organized in collaboration with Berlin's district authorities, the Senate Department for Justice and Consumer Protection, and the public prosecutor's office.
Present at the scene was Berlin's Justice Senator Felor Badenberg, who is under police protection due to threats linked to her role in combating organized crime.
Badenberg, a legal scholar and former vice president of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, aims to enhance the fight against organized crime by targeting the financial incentives that drive these operations.
She emphasized, "Money is the motor of organized crime."
Badenberg outlined her plans to increase pressure on criminal clans, focusing on identifying illegal gains more swiftly during business inspections.
The focal points of these inspections include the sale of illegal e-cigarettes and gambling machines, which are seen as extensions of the traditional illicit activities of organized crime such as drug trafficking, arms smuggling, and burglary.
To strengthen enforcement, Badenberg has initiated a model project designed to better penalize regulatory offenses and recover illegal profits more effectively.
This new approach shifts the emphasis from issuing fines to implementing confiscation orders.
The latter aim to capture total illicit gains from operations, contrasting with fines, which allow offenders to deduct various operational costs.
According to Badenberg, since the launch of this model project, confiscation orders have successfully recovered €172,500, with an additional €310,000 currently in court proceedings and further orders worth €2 million being prepared by regulatory authorities.
She stated that all twelve districts in Berlin will collaborate with this initiative.
The challenges faced by authorities are illustrated by ongoing difficulties in seizing properties linked to organized crime, notably the properties associated with the Remmo clan, totaling 77 in number.
Despite the General Prosecutor's Office seizing these properties in July 2018, legal proceedings are still ongoing, and only two properties have been definitively confiscated so far.
In February 2025, a cooperative platform focusing on organized crime with an emphasis on profit confiscation-related offenses began operations, coordinating efforts among various stakeholders including district mayors, officials from regulatory offices, and prosecutors.
The participation of the State Criminal Police Office and customs authorities is expected where necessary, to optimize future operations.
Badenberg highlighted the establishment of a new office within her administration aimed at acting as a liaison for district authorities, providing legal insight, and organizing inter-agency meetings, in hopes of undermining the financial structures of organized crime networks.
The economic damage caused by organized crime in Germany has escalated from €540 million in 2014 to an estimated €2.7 billion in 2023, significantly driven by unpaid taxes and fees.
In Berlin alone, the economic impact of organized crime reached approximately €57 million in 2023. Furthermore, criminal organizations have seen their profits through illicit activities double from €335 million in 2014 to €1 billion in 2023, with Berlin accounting for €86.4 million of this total.
The police union has expressed grave concern over the surge in illegal gambling-related offenses, with recorded cases increasing tenfold from 555 in 2016 to 5281 in 2023, and projections indicating 6247 cases for 2024. Critics, including police representatives, stress the ineffectiveness of current penalties, urging for enhanced measures, including the potential classification of illegal gambling as a serious offense under criminal law.
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Translated by AI
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