http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20060531-125658-6336r
DARWEN, England, May 31 (UPI) -- A 20-year-old man in Darwen, England, has been sentenced to community service for incurring $55,000 in online gambling debts on his father's credit card.
Stephen Richardson, 45, told the Daily Mail it was the most difficult decision he ever had to make when he learned about the debts his son Daniel had rung up -- whether to pay the credit card bills or prosecute his eldest son.
He said after many sleepless nights, police told him a jail sentence wasn't likely if his son pleaded guilty to seven counts of theft. He proceeded with filing charges, and his son was sentenced to 200 hours of community service, the newspaper said.
"My son isn't bad. He'd been stupid and he's let us all down," Richardson said. "He simply got caught up in something that was bigger than he was."
DARWEN, England, May 31 (UPI) -- A 20-year-old man in Darwen, England, has been sentenced to community service for incurring $55,000 in online gambling debts on his father's credit card.
Stephen Richardson, 45, told the Daily Mail it was the most difficult decision he ever had to make when he learned about the debts his son Daniel had rung up -- whether to pay the credit card bills or prosecute his eldest son.
He said after many sleepless nights, police told him a jail sentence wasn't likely if his son pleaded guilty to seven counts of theft. He proceeded with filing charges, and his son was sentenced to 200 hours of community service, the newspaper said.
"My son isn't bad. He'd been stupid and he's let us all down," Richardson said. "He simply got caught up in something that was bigger than he was."
