| Latest News INTERNATIONAL 6/1/08 TO 6/7/08 Corruption probe called for after cop arrestAU - A top cop was arrested over his alleged links to a global drug cartel. Standen has been charged with conspiracy to import 600 kilograms of chemicals to make 120 million dollars worth of ice. Police have alleged Standen, who was known to have a gambling problem, used his inside information on Australian drug law agencies to tip off the criminal syndicate...
news.sbs.com.au /
4 June, 2008 Depressed gamblers risk addictionAU - New study... Problem gamblers were: 18.8 times more likely than non problem gamblers to display severe psychological distress... 4.3 times more likely to show hazardous alcohol use than non problem gamblers... 2.4 times more likely to be depressed than non problem gamblers. 5.6 times more likely to be divorced than non problem gamblers.
www.sciencealert.com.au /
University of Melbourne /
02 June 2008 French Court Bans Online CasinosFrance - Malta-based online casinos Unibet.com and Expekt.com have been banned by a court in France... [and] ordered to pay just over $1.24 million in damages and interest to the nation's tennis federation, which owns the rights to the French Open...
www.igamingbusiness.com /
04-06-08 Gambling Feeds CorruptionNZ - Problem Gambling Foundation CEO, Graeme Ramsey, says corruption and gambling have gone together since time began. "Lawmakers used to understand the connection between gambling and crime and try to protect our communities against gambling harm, but they seem to have forgotten it in recent years," he says. The 2006 KMPG fraud survey found stealing money to fund gambling is the second most common reason for employee theft and accounts for the largest amounts of money stolen.
www.scoop.co.nz /
Problem Gambling Foundation /
4 June 2008 Gambling addict head-butted fruit machine after blowing holiday cashUK - A GAMBLING addict smashed up the fruit machine in which he lost all his holiday money. He picked up a bar stool and looked like he was going to throw it through the glass front door. He had a change of heart and put it down.
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05 June 2008 Gambling problems linked to locationNZ - New research showing a significant link between how close you live to a gambling venue and the likelihood of your developing a gambling problem should concern local authorities, the Ministry of Health says. People who lived near a gambling venue were more likely to have gambled there and were more likely to have gambling problems. Gambling problems can affect not only the gambler, but also their family/whanau, friends, work colleagues and wider community...
www.stuff.co.nz /
The Press /
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03 June 2008 Genting International Announces New UK Mega-CasinoUK - Genting International has announced plans to create a new, $176 million dollar casino resort destination in the United Kingdom (UK). The proposed casino is subject to the granting of a gaming license...
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June 4, 2008 Pampanga Gov. Eddie T. Panlilio and heads of religious groups in this province have agreed to strengthen their stand against illegal gambling by conducting an intensified information drive on "jueteng" or the illegal numbers game.Philippines - The Catholic priest-turned-governor showed his determination to find out if the legalized Small Town Lottery (STL) has indeed replaced "jueteng" ... Addressing the problem of how to eliminate jueteng has been one of the concerns of the governor since Day 1 of his campaign for the governorship.
www.mb.com.ph /
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6-6-08 Hong Kong baker jailed for six months for tomb-raidingChina - A Hong Kong baker stole human skulls from graves to pay off his mother's gambling debts after being told he could sell them in Malaysia... Later Ip showed remorse and turned himself in to police, handing in the skulls wrapped in three pieces of black cloth...
www.earthtimes.org /
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05 Jun 2008 Husband died of overdose-- wife kept on dealingCD - A "rags to riches to rags" story of a Vietnamese immigrant who worked hard to succeed, then lost everything because of drugs and gambling. After the 2006 [drug] overdose [of her husband] Nguyen gambled even more, ran up debts and began delivering packages of drugs for a man she met at a Niagara Falls casino.
news.therecord.com /
THE RECORD /
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June 06, 2008 I knew he had a gambling problem, admits Standens bossAU - ALLEGATIONS that Mark Standen had a gambling problem appear to have been widely known among law enforcement officers but how much his superiors knew is unclear. When asked about the reputed gambling yesterday, the head of the NSW Crime Commission Phillip Bradley said, "Yes, recently we became aware of that." The arrest of the well-respected officer was the talk of the town among crime-fighters yesterday. Given Standen's encyclopedic knowledge of organised crime in Australia, as well as his access to such sensitive areas as police informants, there was speculation about past NSW Crime Commission investigations that had gone awry.
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June 4, 2008 IOC to monitor betting during Beijing OlympicsChina - In an unprecedented move to keep illegal gambling and match-fixing out of the Olympics, the IOC is setting up a special unit to check for suspicious betting patterns during the Beijing Games... The decision follows a series of betting and fixing scandals and investigations in various professional sports, including soccer, cricket and tennis. In December, Rogge and the IOC executive board were briefed by former London police chief Paul Condon, who has been conducting investigations into gambling and corruption in cricket. Condon said he did not believe the Olympics were particularly at risk, but that vigilance was required. Rogge said the IOC would also be working with Interpol, the international police force, on betting and general security issues in Beijing.
www.kansascity.com /
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Jun. 06, 2008 In pokies gripNZ - Messages posted on The Gambling Helpline's website forum make for sober reading: How is it that i have allowed some machine to control my life . . . in the past two days i have stolen $1100 from my mother and i have fed it all to the machines. Every year, New Zealanders gamble and lose $2 billion, or $5.5 million every single day. It's a problem that reaches into every part of the country. "Problem gambling has a marked effect... It's a silent addiction; no one wants to talk about it...
www.theaucklander.co.nz /
6-3-08 Jackpot Promotion Ban Commercial Suicide For German LotteriesGermany - A High Court has ruled that Bavaria's state-owned lottery can no longer mention jackpot amounts in advertisements as to do so would violate the advertising provisions of Germany's Interstate Gambling Treaty...
www.gamblingcompliance.com /
GamblingCompliance Ltd. /
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06/06/2008 Jail for carer who robbed OAP clientsUK - A WOMAN convicted of stealing thousands of pounds for gambling from elderly residents of sheltered accommodation has been jailed. [she] was hopelessly addicted to slot machines...
www.thevisitor.co.uk /
05 June 2008 Location Could Influence Gambling Problems, According To StudyNZ - The proximity of people in relation to casinos had a big effect on whether a person became a problem gambler or not. The closer a person lived to a casino, the more likely that they had gambled in the casino.
www.casinogamblingweb.com /
CasinoGamblingWeb.com /
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June 4, 2008 Beware newest check scamMO - LeBlanc, vice president and chief compliance officer for Branson Bank, said one of the latest scams arriving in mailboxes across the nation has taken Branson Bank's logo and routing number to make fraudulent cashiers checks. With the checks are instructions asking the recipient to deposit the check, spend a certain amount shopping and wire a large portion back. So far, all the checks have been in the amount of $4,998. By the time the checks are found fraudulent, it is too late. The victims are responsible for those funds.
www.bransondailynews.com /
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June 5, 2008 Man injured after casino shootingUK - A man is recovering in hospital after being shot outside a casino in Edinburgh. The 62-year-old sustained head injuries in the incident outside the Gala Maybury Casino, but police have said they were not life-threatening.
news.bbc.co.uk /
4 June 2008 Mark Standens fall a long time comingAU - Like the Roman god, a mythological gatekeeper, Standen had two personas: one was the competitive, effective and highly decorated investigator; the other was the shadowy alter-ego of an addicted gambler, who managed to evade paying the debts for his sometimes questionable professional methods and friends. The Monday arrest of the assistant director of the secretive NSW Crime Commission over an alleged $120 million drug importation plot sent shockwaves, at least publicly, through the ranks of the law and order community. But for many investigators, Standen's fall from grace was a long time coming and raises serious questions about who is policing the police. In the days since Standen's arrest by AFP officers at his Sydney desk, there has been a steady flow of revelations of how the 33-year veteran of five law enforcement agencies has been adversely named in royal commissions, faced accusations of destroying evidence and managed to overcome a ban on his entry into the AFP several decades ago. Even NSW Crime Commission head Philip Bradley surprised reporters this week by confirming he had been aware that his right-hand man - who oversaw major drug and anti-terrorism investigations - had had a gambling problem.
www.theaustralian.news.com.au /
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June 07, 2008 Moves afoot to switch off TV gamblingAU - OPPOSITION communications spokesman Bruce Billson is seeking bipartisan support to overturn the recent introduction of pay TV gambling in Victoria. "This new technology brings a potentially insidious form of gambling into people's lounge rooms, away from the observation of venues that may have a duty of care to their patrons," Mr Billson said.
business.theage.com.au Mum walks free after stealing $56k from childcare centreAU - The judge said Jurek had stolen to pay for her and her husband's $700-a-week gambling habit...
www.abc.net.au /
June 6, 2008 New gambling laws harming arcade businesses, say ownersUK - Recent changes in legislation mean such businesses have had to reduce their gaming machine stakes and the number of machines. There has been a rise in problem gambling from betting offices as a result of controversial new 'fixed odds betting terminals' and of online gambling...
www.sussexexpress.co.uk /
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02 June 2008 Now Visa, Mastercard under Money Laundering LawIndia - Acting tough on money laundering, the Government on Thursday decided to bring casinos, credit card payment gateways run by Mastercard and Visa, money changers and transfer service providers like Western Union under the ambit of Indian law. Government has decided to amend the Prevention of Money Laudering Act (PMLA) making it mandatory on these financial intermediaries to report all suspected transactions involving international transfers.
www.expressindia.com /
June 05, 2008 Pastors Scoff At Plan For National LotteryBAHAMAS - A group of pastors on Tuesday scoffed at a bid by education officials to fund education's future needs through a national lottery. Wherever a national lottery is introduced crime goes up and there are social problems you have to address... We know that it's us who are going to fix those families that will be destroyed. Money that should go to some social ministry here [at the church] will now have to be diverted to deal with families that are shattered by an addicted father or mother whose money is lost in the gambling hall... No prime minister and no cabinet ought to put that out as an acceptable alternative because the money never goes where they say it will go...
www.jonesbahamas.com /
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June 4, 2008 Play-for-fun poker sites: All fun and games -- until somebody loses a shirtCD - Jeffrey Derevensky is co-director of McGill University's International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems. He says a recent study revealed "25 per cent of kids who gamble on the Internet are what we call probable pathological gamblers." "Young brains are not fully mature," explains John Macdonald, an addiction therapist at Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. "Kids tend to feel bulletproof." A particularly dangerous time is when a young person leaves home for university, armed with a credit card. Both Mr. Derevensky and Mr. Macdonald have counselled students whose obsession with online gambling led them to drop classes. Mr. Macdonald, who has been counselling addicts for 11 years, says online gambling has become "a significant problem" in the past four years. In particular, he noticed a spike during the 2004-2005 NHL lockout, when a dearth of hockey led programmers to televise more poker tournaments. Youth are more attracted to online gambling because the design of the sites is similar to video games.
www.nationalpost.com /
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May 31, 2008 Player reveals gambling addictionUK - A long-serving footballer in the West Midlands has admitted having a 16-year gambling addiction which led to him recently considering suicide. He had gambled away at least #500,000 over the years... I had nowhere to turn. I'd hurt everyone around me. I'd gambled more money than what I could afford...
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6 June 2008 Private bill aimed at interactive pay-TV gamblingAU - A FEDERAL Opposition MP has introduced a private member's bill to stop interactive gambling through pay-TV. Opposition communications spokesperson Bruce Billson said he was concerned about the despair, economic and emotional hardship caused by problem gambling. The bill also calls on the Government to review the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 which allows wagering over the phone or internet.
www.theaustralian.news.com.au /
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June 03, 2008 Queensland push for ATM limits near pokie machinesAU - QUEENSLAND will push for a national limit on withdrawals from automatic teller machines in gaming venues to combat problem gambling. About 240,000 Queenslanders were believed to be problem gamblers or "at risk" of becoming addicted to gambling.
www.news.com.au /
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June 06, 2008 Radio boss accused of theft to tune of R13mS. AFRICA - [He] went from disgrace as an accountant to the high life as a radio-station executive who is now accused of stealing nearly R13-million -- and then fleeing the country on a business-class ticket. [He] had a gambling problem and used company credit cards to pay off his gambling debts.
www.thetimes.co.za /
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Jun 02, 2008 Retailer boycotts lotteryCD - "I called [Atlantic Lottery Corp] because I don't condone selling tickets to minors," he said. "In fact, I've told all my staff repeatedly that if I ever found out they were knowingly selling tickets to a minor, I would fire them. He was particularly miffed that the corporation wouldn't tell him who had sold the ticket. Mr. Wood believes the lottery corporation's inspectors should follow the same practice that tobacco inspectors do. "They send minors into the stores, too, to catch offenders, but when they do catch one, they come back into the store immediately and identify the seller of the tobacco to the owner. That's the way Atlantic Lotto should be doing it, too. If they'd done that, I could have handled the situation immediately."
thechronicleherald.ca /
Amherst Bureau /
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Jun 5 Russia Struggles With Problem GamblingRUSSIA - Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Dmitry Medvedev are planning to limit gambling to four zones created in outlying areas, effective by mid-2009. Russia is estimated to have over 3 million problem gamblers. By removing access, Putin supporters theorize that number would drop by 2/3, down to 1 million.
www.onlinecasinoadvisory.com /
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June 5, 2008 Top Australian cop linked to global drug syndicateAU - One of Australia's most senior police officers was charged Tuesday with being part of an international drug-smuggling syndicate. Standen had a gambling problem...
www.topnews.in /
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June 3, 2008 Tories would abolish Big Lottery Fund and give money only to charities, not pet projectsUK - The controversial Big Lottery Fund would be axed under a Conservative Government - and every penny given to good causes and voluntary groups. David Cameron attacked Labour for diverting cash from the fund to its pet projects. Pledging to bring back "integrity" to lottery funding, the Tories said the original four good causes - arts, sports, heritage and communities - will be restored. Critics claim that hundreds of millions of pounds are siphoned off every year for schemes which should be funded by taxes.
www.dailymail.co.uk /
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03 June 2008 Uproar at Brisbane Lions pokie palaceAU - BRISBANE Lions Football Club is pushing to build a ``pokie palace'' in Logan Shire, arguably the problem gambling capital of Queensland. Anti-gambling groups say the number of poker machines will inflict further` damage on the local community. "We see a lot of family breakdowns, job losses, clients committing fraud to service their addiction and adding more machines will just increase the incidences of problem gambling,"
www.news.com.au /
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June 05, 2008 Virtual racing plan draws attention of PGFNZNZ - The Problem Gambling Foundation Of New Zealand (PGFNZ) is asking what the New Zealand Racing Board is playing at with its plan to introduce virtual racing. "The only possible reason we can think of is that the Board wants to take more money from their existing customer base" he says. The idea of customers spending a few minutes between races without spending money seems too much for the Board to bear.
www.harnesslink.com /
Problem Gambling Foundation /
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06-Jun-2008 Woman stole sick kids' cashAU - A WOMAN who stole almost $800 destined for the Royal Children's Hospital should be ''thoroughly ashamed'' [she is] pleading guilty to charges she stole almost $7500 from her employer to support a gambling addiction. [she] understood she had committed an extremely serious offence of dishonesty.
bendigo.yourguide.com.au /
6/06/2008 Workers Union Strike Closes Casinos In OntarioCD - In Ontario, two casinos were shut down overnight after the Canadian Auto Workers Union began a strike. The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation shut down the casinos. Workers in casinos had been at the bottom of the pool when it comes to benefits. They worked whatever hours the casinos chose, and most were working without any benefits.
www.casinogamblingweb.com /
CasinoGamblingWeb.com /
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June 2, 2008 Would-be assassin shot wrong man outside casino, customers claimUK - REGULAR customers at a casino where a millionaire businessman was shot in the head at point-blank range believe he was gunned down in a case of mistaken identity. Casino members said the intended target was an Asian businessman who owed #70,000 in gambling and drug debts. Customers at the casino said the gunman approached [the victim] on foot and shot him in the side of the head at close range... Detectives are trying to establish a motive for the attack but say they have not ruled out the possibility it was part of a "gangland" hit.
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06 June 2008 |
Latest NewsInternational News 6/1/08 To 6/7/08