Ladbrokes in Trouble over Problem Gambler. it has been accused of aiding a problem gamer who defrauded his parent company of over 3million AUD (Image Source: ladbrokes.com/en/)Ladbrokes, a gambling operator has been accused of aiding a problem gamer from Australia who defrauded his parent company of over 3 million Australian dollars to feed his own gambling addiction. As a result, litigators are now suing Ladbrokes for about 5.1 million dollars in a court action. The suit is a development from the accusation which the betting brand is facing over its participation in the customer’s illegal actions.
About the Case
Jaicome Spinella, the problem gambler who works at Bauen Concrete (a concreting firm based in Melbourne), admitted that he loaded over 3.1 million Australian dollars of the company’s funds into his own personal Ladbrokes betting account within 7 months (December 2016 to July 2017). Spinella controlled all Bauen’s finances, so he ran the firm with his friend and brother. Since he oversaw all the company’s funds, Spinella used the company’s credit cards to load his betting account 571 different times between December 2016 and July 2017.
In 2017, Mr Spinella finally confessed to the illegal acts, and liquidators were invited which resulted in the loss of jobs for 50 employees at Bauen Concrete. Reports had it that Spinella cooperated with ASIC, the police, and liquidators and admitted that he lent over 3 million Australian dollars to himself at the detriment of the company.
On Monday, Spinella pleaded guilty in court to a one-count charge of dishonesty. After Bauen Concrete was shut down Spinellas later relocated to Brisbane where he was diagnosed with an alcohol dependency and gambling disorder. Spinella will later travel to Melbourne so that he can be present for the hearing at the Victoria County Court on Monday which implies that he will have to remain in custody till he will be sentenced on Friday.
Ladbrokes Did Not Help The Problem Gambler
Every gambling operator is expected to prioritize responsible gambling in its operators and also encourage its players and clients to do the same. This is because responsible gambling is the best way to ensure that gamblers do not end up with addiction and other gaming problems. Thus, a lawsuit of 5.1 million Australian dollars has been slammed on Ladbrokes for allegedly failing to prevent Spinella from mismanaging his firm’s funds and also aiding his gambling problem. On Monday, Nadia Kaddeche, Spinellas’s lawyer stated that internal emails between staff of Ladbrokes revealed that they encouraged Jaicome to keep on with his betting addiction since it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for them to get more income.
According to Michael Cahill, the presiding Judge, the email evidence makes it feel like Ladbrokes (which is part of the large Entain gambling group) had aided Jaicome’s gambling problems and that there seems to be some interference, is not exploitation on the part of the gambling operator. In the court, Nadia Kaddeche mentioned that Jaicome’s gambling worsened because he was trying to recover the money he had lost from gambling at some point. The lawyer also pointed out that her client’s gambling addiction became too high for him to handle.
The major sports betting customer is now facing a prison term for pleading guilty to dishonesty. Judge Michael stated that a prison term sentence was inevitable for the defendant because of the large sum he had mismanaged to waste on gambling. Ladbrokes is notable for getting into hot waters with regulatory bodies in Australia. The company was fined in New South Wales last year for providing inducements to residents in the state to gamble in a way that contravened gambling rules and regulations in the locality.
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