Gambling Addict sentenced for bilking bank clients for internet gambling

Barrie man sentenced for bilking bank clients

Man sentenced

A Barrie man was sent to jail for 3-1/2 years after being found guilty of stealing from TD Canada Trust customers' line of credit accounts to feed a gambling addicion. In one case, the man spent $100,000 at the Platinum SB that police shutdown following a raid in February 2013.

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SIDEBAR

Signs of gambling addiction
• Hiding bills, past due notices, winnings or losses;
• Gambling instead of spending time with friends or family;
• Neglecting work and personal needs because of gambling;
• Increased tension, stress and arguments relating to money;
• Getting irritated more easily or having less patience when dealing with normal, everyday activities;
• Constantly thinking or talking about gambling;
• Finding it difficult to control, stop or cut down gambling, or feeling irritable when trying to do so;
• Thinking that your gambling will get under control as soon you have a ‘big win’;
• Borrowing money, selling things, committing (or considering committing) criminal acts in order to get money for gambling;
• Often gambling until all of your money is gone;
• Needing to gamble with larger amounts of money or for longer periods of time in order to get the same feeling of excitement;
• Experiencing extreme highs from gambling wins and extreme lows from gambling losses;
• Gambling to escape personal problems or to relieve feelings of anxiety, depression, anger, or loneliness;
• Increased debt, unpaid bills or other financial troubles.
How to protect finances - Once you have identified there is a problem, there are short term strategies to help protect finances:
• Set a realistic budget with your partner. Having a plan will cool down stress, minimizing the risk of a return to gambling for a quick financial fix;
• Negotiate for control of managing family finances;
• Take action to protect assets;
• Do not rescue the gambler by offering money to pay off debts. This will only allow the problem to continue;
• Seek professional help for both financial advice and emotional support.

Vaughan Citizen

 

By Jeremy Grimaldi

A gambling addict has been sentenced to federal prison after losing almost $3 million of bank customers’ cash to an infamous sports betting website.

Andrew Ramdass of Barrie was sentenced to 3-1/2 years after losing thousands of dollars at a time as he fraudulently accessed via the Vaughan TD Bank where he worked.

The 29-year-old lost the money – including more than $100,000 on one particular weekend – gambling on the Platinum Sports Book website.

The site was the subject of a major 18-month York Regional Police investigation that culminated Feb. 3, 2013 when the force busted a Super Bowl party at Le Parc banquet hall in Markham.

York police said the party was organized by the same people who run the website, including members of organized crime groups such as the Hells Angels.

During the bust, police confiscated cellphones, laptops and $2.5 million in cash.

In that investigation, police charged seven York Region residents from Richmond Hill, Concord, Stouffville, Aurora, Thornhill and Markham in connection to the investigation.

                          

On Friday, Mr. Ramdass was sentenced for the crimes he committed between September 2011 and April 2012 by Justice Peter West.

                          

The judge considered mitigating factors in sentencing, including that Mr. Ramdass was an addict, Det. Fred Kerr, head of York’s corporate fraud division, said.

During a seven-month period, he was accessing clients’ unused lines of credit only to indulge his severe gambling problem and spend the money betting on basketball and hockey matches, Det. Kerr said.

                          

“He was very busy,” he added. “It’s my belief that it (all the money) went to gambling.”

 

The bank covered the losses so more than dozen customers targeted were not affected, according to Det. Kerr.

At the end of the court proceedings, Mr. Ramdass expressed regret for his actions and apologized to the bank and customers.

Det. Kerr said he deals with a number of these styles of frauds due to gambling addictions each year.

http://www.ourwindsor.ca/news-story/4301977-barrie-man-sentenced-for-bilking-bank-clients/