Bowling Manager Steals £73k For Gambling Spree

The deputy manager at a UK bowling alley has received nine months in prison after stealing £73,295 ($117,616) in order to fund his gambling habit.
Stuart Lee Todd, 29, worked at the Hollywood Bowl in Kingswood, Hull and apparently stole thousands of pounds over several years but was only caught after an internal audit revealed large sums of money, as well as 21 banking slips  missing. Subsequently, Todd handed himself into the police station after receiving a telephone call from the auditors.
Despite the extended period of his stealing, Todd is only being charged for the £73,295 which was taken over an eight month period between March and November 2011. Commenting on his client’s actions, barrister John Thackray, said:
“The background to this is his gambling addiction. He started using slot machines and got into debt. It escalated as he expected he would get a big win. He was then moving on to betting shops, casinos playing roulette and gradually lost more and more money. He appreciated he has serious problems.”
Since the crime was brought to light, Stuart Lee Todd has pleaded guilty to theft and returned £10,000 of the money stolen, but is claiming that everything else was spent on gambling. Nevertheless, in August he will return to court when the Crown Prosecution Service will be seeking to remove further of his assets.
Passing sentence on Stuart Lee Todd at Hull Magistrates’ Court, Judge Mettyear said:
“You were in a stable relationship and you had a steady job and a regular wage and it should have been sufficient if you had continued to live a law-abiding life. But you turned to gambling and you suffered losses which caused you to gamble more in the fruitless hope that you would win back enough money to pay off the debts you have accrued.”