Leicester man driven to suicide by online gambling addiction in lockdown, claims widow
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The widow of a Leicester man says he was driven to suicide by a gambling addiction and debt he accrued after being enticed by free online betting offers while furloughed during lockdown.
An inquest into the death of Luke Ashton, 40, opened at Leicester Coroner's Court yesterday (AUG 19).
The father-of-two had travelled more than 100 miles from the family home to take his own life earlier this year.
His body was found in a flat in Swinton, a borough of Rotherham, in South Yorkshire, on April 22, the hearing at Leicester Town Hall was told.
Assistant coroner for Leicester City and South Leicestershire, Dianne Hocking, said that Mr Ashton was identified by his fingerprints.
A post-mortem examination was carried out on April 30 which she said recorded the cause of death as hanging.
The inquest was adjourned while further investigations into the circumstances are carried out.
A review hearing was set for January 6, next year.
Mr Ashton's devastated wife Annie, 39, lays the blame for the tragedy squarely at the feet of online betting firms whose apps lure punters in by offering free bets.
"Two months ago today my husband took his own life," she said, in an emotional YouTube video recorded earlier this summer to highlight the dangers of online gambling.
"Like anyone in this situation, you've got so many questions as to why.
"I did have a suspicion, but it wasn't until about two or three weeks ago, when I got his phone back from the police that it was there in plain view.
"Luke had developed a gambling addiction."
Mrs Ashton, who is primary school teacher, said it was just four months between him being sent an e-mail from an online betting firm, initially offering him a free bet, and his death.
It hadn't been the first time, however, that he'd been enticed in this way into gambling online.
"Luke had done this before, it was something he had done, so it wasn't completely new," she said.
Mr Ashton - who his friends have described as being witty and loyal, and an avid Leicester City fan - had come across a betting scheme whereby punters can lay odds on horses losing, rather than winning, races.
"Luke thought he was going to earn some money from that, but he ended up actually losing quite a bit of money," she said.
"It destroyed him, it really did, because he then ended up with some debt."
On that occasion, the couple were eventually able to pay it off and get their household finances back on an even keel.
Mrs Ashton said her husband had managed to steer clear of gambling for almost two years after that.
But this all changed when the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown hit, when her husband was furloughed from his job as a printer.
"He was furloughed and I suppose Luke found himself with a quite lot of time on his hands," she said. "That in itself would have been difficult for Luke because he was an absolute grafter.
"He would graft the extra hours, if they were there, he was there early if he didn't need to be. His work was his life - he was a provider and wanted to take care of his family like most men out there."
Mrs Ashton said he was at home when he received another unsolicited message from an online betting firm, again offering him a free bet.
"Like most of these free bets, they're designed to put money back into the system, which is what happened," she said.
"He took this free bet, he placed a bet and he won from it.
"He actually won quite a bit of money, I'm not talking hundreds, but he then put that money back in."
She added: "He did win a few times, but with the wins there are always the losses - and the losses always outweigh the wins.
"He was then chasing those losses, and got some loans out - and those loans disappeared because they just went into that company's pocket.
"He then took out other loans - and he, basically, lost control."
Her husband's mental health had then continued to unravel.
"He would not have wanted to tell me any of this," said Mrs Ashton. "He would have been so ashamed about what he'd done.
"I think, in his head, he just did not know what else he could do.
"For me, it's not logical what he's done but in his head it was - he must have felt so low."
Mrs Ashton has launched a UK Parliament petition calling on the Government to ban free bets, which she is calling Luke's Law and has already gathered more than 15,000 signatures.
If it gets to 100,000 then it will force a debate to be held on the issue in the House of Commons.
"For someone like Luke, he wasn't able to talk and didn't feel he was able to talk about his mental health and what he'd done," said Mrs Ashton, who is also calling for an end to betting firm adverts during live sport on TV.
"There are many men out there, as we know, that are the same and, for those people, prevention is better than a cure.
"There is absolutely no reason why these free bets should even exist."
"I've called it Luke's Law, in honour of my husband," she added. "I want to do something that's going to help someone out there, and I really do believe that it will."
To sign Annie's petition, .
If your family has been bereaved by gambling-related suicide, specialist support is available at www.gamblingwithlives.org, or contact support@gamblingwithlives.org.
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