MOSCOW, October 6 (RAPSI) - The State Duma Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building recommended on Thursday that the lower house of Russia’s parliament pass a bill on criminal punishment for organizing unlicensed gambling activities out of specialized gaming zones, RIA Novosti reported.

Currently, unlicensed gambling in bookmaker's offices and betting houses is punishable by administrative fines and seizure of property.

Under the bill, illegal gaming business would be punished with fines of up to 500,000 rubles ($8,000) or the offender’s salary or other income for a period of up to 3 years; compulsory community service for up to 240 hours; supervised release for a term of up to 4 years or imprisonment for up to 2 years.

Regular granting a lease of a building for illegal gambling (more than twice) would be punishable by fines ranging from 500,000 to 1 million rubles ($16,000) or the offender’s salary or other income for a period of up to 5 years or a prison sentence for a term of up to 4 years.

The amendments are proposed to the Criminal Code of Russia.

Gambling business was prohibited in Russia on July 1, 2009 with the exception of four specialized gambling zones: Kaliningrad Region, Primorsky Krai, Altai Krai and Krasnodar Krai. According to Kommersant, Russia has only four legal casinos: “Oracle” and “Nirvana” in Krasnodar Krai, “Altai Palace” in Altai Krai and Tigre de Crystal in Primorsky Krai.