Three arrested in Britain over cricket betting claims

Two men and a woman have been arrested in Britain in connection with allegations that Pakistani cricket players were involved in a betting scam, customs officials and sources said Tuesday.

"Three individuals were arrested on Sunday as part of an ongoing investigation into money laundering," said a statement from Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, a government agency.

"This includes two 35-year-olds (a male and a female) from the Croydon area and a 49-year-old male from the Wembley area. These individuals were arrested, questioned and have been bailed pending further investigation."

Croydon and Wembley are suburbs of London.

A source said the arrests were linked to allegations that members of the Pakistan cricket team were involved in a betting scam, although a spokeswoman for HM Revenue and Customs refused to confirm this or give further details.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has promised "decisive action" if newspaper allegations, that a middleman took money to arrange for Pakistani players to bowl no-balls against England last week, prove to be true.

The News of the World claimed it had paid Mazhar Majeed for advance details of three no-balls in the Test match at Lord's in London.

Majeed, 35, an agent for several Pakistan players, was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers in the wake of the allegations, but was released on bail without charge Sunday. AFP