This week a UK court in Maidstone laid down a 3 year prison sentence to a 57 year old woman who stole £913,000 from her employers to gamble online.
Caroline Durmont was found guilty of stealing £913,000 from the company Tara Plant Hire as well as £33,000 from Steadfast Carpentry, earning the reputation as a high-rolling VIP gambler online. The reality of the situation though, was that Durmont was a bookkeeper who earned just £3,000 per month, drove a 13-year-old car, and lived in a council home.
The defendant spoke during the trial, admitting to her crimes by saying: "I had been at Tara six years and they trusted me. I took GBP 50 one week. Then I was short again, so I borrowed GBP100. Soon I was taking as much as GBP 3,000 every few days. At its height I was taking up to GBP 20,000 a week, betting GBP 250 a time."
Durmont said that she began gambling online after she got divorced in 2011 and was considered a VIP at Mecca Bingo, who gave her free trips to Las Vegas and the Caribbean. At one point she was betting more than £50,000 per month.
While the criminal copped to her crimes, she said that Mecca Bingo could have stopped the situation and prevented a lot of the financial hardship brought upon the businesses. "I could've been stopped," Durmont said. "In 2012 Mecca had enough evidence to trigger a warning system. When gambling spirals out of control it's their duty to tell the Gambling Commission."
Durmont was given a 3 year and 4 month sentence.