Pham “Zeros” Minh Loc, his brother Pham Minh Phuoc and three other people have been put under criminal probe and detained for organizing and participating in gambling activities.
Pham “Zeros” Minh Loc during a League of Legends competition. Photo by VCS |
The Ha Tinh People’s Procuracy announced the decision on their website, confirming that Zeros, a former professional League of Legends (LoL) player and his brother Phuoc used their YouTube gaming channel to facilitate betting activities tied to match results.
The investigation revealed that the brothers created a system where viewers could place bets on whether Zeros would win or lose his online matches.
Bettors select Zeros wins or loses and transfer money to one of two bank accounts under Phuoc’s name. The betting limits ranged from VND200,000 to VND20,000,000 ($7.91-7,906), with a win-loss payout ratio of 1:1.9, which means the winner gets 1.9 times the money that they put into the bet.
Bettors have a window of 5–10 minutes before a match to place their bets. After each match, the brothers and their accomplices transferred winnings to successful bettors.
In five matches of Zeros between Oct. 30 and Nov. 4, 2024, Nguyen Minh Tuan, Phan Tan Dung, and Ho Nguyen Ngoc Loi placed 21 bets totaling VND132,660,000.
Authorities have approved the prosecution process against Zeros and the four other people, and their temporary detention, with investigations ongoing.
Zeros, 24, was once a prominent figure in the Vietnamese LoL scene, representing several major teams and achieving great success with three national championships. However, his career ended in 2021 after a controversial statement led to a lifetime ban from professional LoL competitions in Vietnam. He was also fired from his team at the time, SBTC eSports.
After that, Zeros transitioned to streaming, where he maintained a large fan base and attracted thousands of viewers to his gaming livestreams.
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