The rigorous sanctioning regime of the legislative piece classifies raffle fraud as a criminal offense of extreme gravity
Santo Domingo.- The bill regulating gambling introduces severe criminal penalties that include up to a decade in prison for those who distort or alter the results of draws or any game of chance.
The legislative proposal seeks to unify and modernize the regulatory framework of a sector that currently has more than 71,000 lottery and sports betting shops registered in the national territory.
The rigorous sanctioning regime of the legislative piece classifies lottery fraud as a criminal offense of extreme gravity. Specifically, Article 164, numeral 2 of the law establishes that anyone “who alters or distorts by any means the result of bets or any game of chance” shall be punished with sentences of 5 to 10 years of major imprisonment.
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In addition to the deprivation of liberty, individuals who engage in this criminal conduct will face fines ranging from 10 to 20 minimum wages of the public sector.
These measures seek to safeguard transparency in the sector and protect public trust, ensuring that gambling remains clean and meets the standards of randomness and unpredictability required by the General Directorate of Gambling (DGJA).
Other penalties against technical manipulation of gambling games
The severity of the law is not limited solely to the direct distortion of the final outcome of the draws. Article 163, numeral 1 contemplates penalties of 2 to 5 years of minor imprisonment and fines of 9 to 15 minimum wages for those who tamper with slot machines or any other game of chance with the purpose of altering their payment mechanisms or their internal systems without due authorization.
Under this same scale of penalties of two to five years in prison, developers, programmers, or systems technicians who design or implement software, applications, or electronic services to market lottery draws or games of chance that do not have the express authorization of the DGJA will be punished.
Likewise, numeral 7 of the same article punishes with this same penalty of minor imprisonment anyone who manipulates, with the intention to deceive, any component of a gaming device in a manner contrary to its original operational design.
In the event that fraudulent maneuvers of result alteration or technical manipulation are executed under the structure of a commercial company, the consequences will be lethal for the entity. Article 165 stipulates that these legal entities will be sanctioned directly with the payment of fines equivalent to the crime committed.
Furthermore, Article 167 determines that if the legal entity is used as a means, cover, or facade to commit the crime, the courts may order its definitive dissolution, the closure of its establishments, subjection to judicial supervision for up to 5 years, or the immediate seizure and confiscation of all assets that have been used to operate the fraud.
The National Congress opened the Second Ordinary Legislature of the year 2026 last Sunday, August 16, and in this stage, the Senate must focus on reviewing the modifications made by the deputies to the piece for its subsequent approval and submission to the Executive Branch for its promulgation.
Fraud background
A relevant precedent regarding the manipulation of gambling in the Dominican Republic is the so-called Operation 13, an investigation that arose following the fraud committed during the National Lottery quiniela draw on May 1, 2021. According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office indictment, a structure coordinated the alteration of the draw to favor the outcome of the number 13 ball and obtain profits through bets placed with prior knowledge of the result. Authorities estimated that the fraudulent operation caused losses exceeding RD$500 million.
The judicial process derived from Operation 13 concluded with convictions against several of those involved. In February 2026, the Second Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice rejected appeals for annulment and upheld the final convictions against eight people linked to the case.
