One of Britain’s biggest bookmakers agreed to pay £1m to the victims of a problem gambler who had stolen the money he was using to bet, in return for a pledge not to inform the industry regulator.
Ladbrokes showered the gambling addict with thousands of pounds-worth of gifts over two years – including free tickets to football matches and business class flights.
The gambler, a British citizen who ran a property business in Dubai, later admitted to having stolen from his clients in order to fund his high-roller habit, which cost him up to £60,000 in a day.
After five of his victims made a complaint against Ladbrokes for allegedly accepting stolen funds, the bookmaker agreed to pay them a combined sum of £975,000.
But according to a settlement agreement seen by the Guardian, Ladbrokes demanded that they “agree not to bring any complaint or make any report to any regulator in relation to the claim” in order to receive the money.
The industry regulator, the Gambling Commission, which typically does not comment on individual cases, said: “We are enquiring into this matter to ascertain the full circumstances.
“We have clear expectations of all operating and individual personal management licence holders, we expect them to work with us in an open and cooperative way including the need to disclose to us anything which we would reasonably expect to know.”
A spokesman for Ladbrokes said: “We are cooperating with the Gambling Commission where necessary and have no comment to make at this time.”
Text messages and photo evidence passed to the Guardian reveal the extent to which Ladbrokes offered the gambling addict generous incentives, a common practice in the industry designed to ensure the loyalty of high-rollers.
It lavished him with corporate hospitality, including free tickets to Arsenal games, four tickets to see the Floyd Mayweather v Marcos Maidana boxing match in Las Vegas and an invitation to the company box at Royal Ascot.
On one occasion, emails seen by the Guardian indicate that the company agreed to pay for business class return flights from Dubai to London, worth more than £2,000, so that he could attend the north London derby between Arsenal and Tottenham.
The company also sent him Fortnum & Mason hampers at Christmas and placed a birthday gift of £3,500 credit in his account, as well as regular gifts of free bonus chips, to be used to place bets.
The enticements continued to arrive during and after a period in which records seen by the Guardian show that he stopped placing bets for five months.
Read more The Guardian
