‘I went to jail for stealing £1.3m to gamble away’

A father who stole over £1 million to fund his gambling addiction has shared his story to encourage others to seek help.

In an interview with the BBC, Andy May explained that after gambling away his deposit for his family’s first house he didn’t place another bet for seven years. But a ‘free’ bet advert during the 2014 FIFA World Cup persuaded him to start again.

After serving two years in prison for using his company credit card to bet £1.3 million, the father of two is now volunteering with GambleAware to “speak out with the hope of trying to persuade others to act differently”.

Family

May said: “Do I think that I could ever gamble again? Sadly the answer is probably yes. But what I focus on every single day is making sure that I don’t, today. There’s nothing I could possibly win that would make my life better and I have everything to lose.

“I’d be gambling with so many things that aren’t money, like my recovery, all of the relationships I have managed to save and the trust people have rebuilt in me. There’s just no point.”

Reflecting on his experience, he said: “Watching my kids go to school on the day I went to prison was the worst day of my life” and the impact “on those closest to me has been far worse than prison ever was”.

He added: “I am thankful to still have a close relationship with my children”.

Premier League

In December, MPs warned that the Premier League’s proposed ban on gambling companies sponsoring football shirts is unlikely to have much effect on reducing young people’s exposure to gambling.

A report by the Select Committee for Culture, Media and Sport said the pledge would not protect children from the “bombardment” of betting ads, and criticised the Government for not taking swifter action on gambling reform.

The Government produced a white paper on changes to gambling legislation last April. It proposes to make gamblers pass affordability checks before they bet, restrict betting on slot machines, and force bookmakers and casinos to pay a levy to treat gambling addicts, but offers few recommendations for changing advertising regulations.