KINGSTON, Jamaica — Over 2,000 previously unregistered slot machines were licensed during a Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission (BGLC) licensing amnesty late last year.

“That was an important breakthrough in terms of bringing the kind of control we want to the industry,” said Chief Executive Officer at the BGLC, Vitus Evans.

He said that the amnesty was undertaken in preparation for the new licensing period, which begins in February this year.

“We knew that there were a number of illegal operators out there, and so we tried to engage them to get them to register,” he noted.

Evans said it is important for the industry to be regulated, as there are various stakeholders, as well as the Government, whose interests must be protected.

The amnesty, which took place between November 15 and December 31, resulted in the BGLC discovering more than 3,000 illegal gaming machines at over 1,000 locations across Jamaica.

“It is $10,000 to license each machine, so the illegal machines found would have represented $30 million in lost revenue to the Government in the gaming machines sector alone,” said Director of Licensing at the BGLC, Maurice Thompson.

Thompson noted that the illegal operators were identified by the compliance team in the field, noting that they were mostly found in community bars, hairdressing parlors and restaurants.

He urged people with unregistered machines to get regularised, as they could face penalties such as seizure of the machines, and operators could be arrested and charged.

He warned that players could also be arrested and charged.