BY TOM SOMACH

The chief executive officer of online gambling company Unibet (www.unibet.com) was arrested Monday by authorities in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, in connection with allegations the company violated French gambling laws.

According to media reports out of Europe, Unibet CEO Petter Nylander, at the request of French authorities, was arrested at the Amsterdam airport as he prepared to fly to the U.K.

Nylander is Swedish.

The allegations involve violations of French laws designed to protect French gambling monopolies.

Specifically, the allegations stem from complaints filed last year by a French company providing a lottery and another French company that offers horse race wagering.

Unibet, licensed in Malta and based in the U.K., takes bets from French customers.

It offers on its website online poker, online casino games, online sports betting and online horse race betting.

As of Wednesday, Nylander remained in a Dutch prison.

(E-mail Tom Somach at tomsomach@yahoo.com.)