Online giant ‘ has profited from gambler’s death’
BETTING giant Playtech has been accused of profiting from a highflying engineer’s suicide after claims it has refused to pay back his losses to his grieving family.
Chris Bruney, 25, a gambling addict, took his own life hours after being plied with bonuses by staff at Winner.co.uk, an online casino owned by the £1billion company.
At first Playtech used a legal loophole to avoid paying a £3.5million fine over his death and only paid up after a Daily Mail campaign.
But Mr Bruney’s family say that the company has now refused to pay back £119,000 he lost in the five days before his death.
His mother Judith said: ‘It is shameful... They have profited from his death.’
Mr Bruney, a £60,000-a-year electrical engineer from Sheffield who was designated a VIP player, was given £4,500 in bonuses and 120 ‘free spins’ in the five days before he died. After an investigation, the Gambling Commission found ‘serious systemic failings’ in the way Playtech’s subsidiary, PT Entertainment Services, managed social responsibility. The Bruney family has accused the Commission of incompetence over the case.
Mr Bruney’s partner Fran Green said: ‘The continued abuse by the gambling industry is costing more lives. It must stop.’
Playtech said Mr Bruney’s losses were ‘included in the £3.5million charitable donation and [we] worked with the family to ensure this went to charities delivering impactful programmes to reduce gambling-related harms’.