Gambler Sentenced to Seven Years for Stealing £2 Million

A financial adviser from West Sussex was sentenced to seven years in prison after admitting to earning over £2 million by conning his partners, friends and cousins in an online betting scheme.

David Gale made his investors believe he had found a formula to earn huge profits from online sports betting, but rather than investing the money he would immediately withdraw and then spend it on holidays, shopping, expensive wines and home remodelling.

The 51-year-old registered bank accounts as well as Betfair betting accounts on behalf of his ex wife Faye before persuading her father and grandfather to hand him more cash.

Banker Frauds Over 30 People

Gale earned more than £2 million from tricking over 30 persons into handing him the money he was supposed to invest in the online betting scheme between 2008 and 2011.

The man from Chichester, West Sussex, was sentenced to six years for fraud charges and additional year for unauthorised regulated activity at the Guildford Crown Court on Friday.

Gale has lost £1.8m of the £2.3m he earned using said fraud, spending it while betting on sports, horse racing, greyhound racing and casino games.

The court hearing revealed that the banker had informed some of his investors back in March 2011 that he had lost all the money by pressing a wrong button on the computer when placing the bet, at which point most of his victims started to believe they were conned.

However, some continued to give Gale money, with 71-year-old Christine Burnett becoming romantically involved with the banker before handing him whopping £800,000. The woman befriended Gale after his husband had died in November 2008, as she reportedly felt sorry for the financial adviser for losing the money and his wife.

The defendant then used the same scheme he had tested on his ex wife to con Mrs Burnett of her money, leaving the woman in serious debt and squandering her inheritance.

Mr Gale’s attorney, John Dye, claimed that his client had an ongoing gambling problem that forced him to look for treatment during the three years he was on bail. However, Judge Christopher Critchlow had no sympathy for the banker’s crimes and handed him jail time for each of the 34 charges.