Perhaps only Kenny Alexander knows what prompted his change of heart as he ran home shortly after 10pm on May 7, 2021.
Minutes earlier, “King Kenny” had picked up a takeaway driver’s car from outside Marmaris Kebab shop in Perth, Scotland after a three-hour drinking binge, a court would later hear.
But between dumping the car and high-tailing it home, the former FTSE 100 betting chief’s “moment of madness” made way for contrition.
“It’s me you’re looking for,” Alexander told officers from Tayside Police as they arrived at his house to see him standing outside.
The gambling industry tycoon subsequently admitted that he had taken the car without permission during a hearing at the Perth Sheriff Court. He also admitted to driving over the alcohol limit and without insurance. He was fined £1,000 and banned from driving for a year.
During his some 13 years at the helm, the straight-talking Scotsman had transformed an Aim-quoted betting minnow into a FTSE 100 giant with a stable of gambling brands that included Ladbrokes, Coral, Bwin and Partypoker.
But his exit came under a cloud. GVC – now called Entain – faced an investigation into running an illegal gambling operation in Turkey between 2011 and 2017. The inquiry is only now coming to a head, with bosses at Entain bracing for a “substantial financial penalty” under a deferred prosecution agreement currently being finalised with the Crown Prosecution Service. Analysts have estimated that it could be about £230m.
Minutes earlier, “King Kenny” had picked up a takeaway driver’s car from outside Marmaris Kebab shop in Perth, Scotland after a three-hour drinking binge, a court would later hear.
But between dumping the car and high-tailing it home, the former FTSE 100 betting chief’s “moment of madness” made way for contrition.
“It’s me you’re looking for,” Alexander told officers from Tayside Police as they arrived at his house to see him standing outside.
The gambling industry tycoon subsequently admitted that he had taken the car without permission during a hearing at the Perth Sheriff Court. He also admitted to driving over the alcohol limit and without insurance. He was fined £1,000 and banned from driving for a year.
During his some 13 years at the helm, the straight-talking Scotsman had transformed an Aim-quoted betting minnow into a FTSE 100 giant with a stable of gambling brands that included Ladbrokes, Coral, Bwin and Partypoker.
But his exit came under a cloud. GVC – now called Entain – faced an investigation into running an illegal gambling operation in Turkey between 2011 and 2017. The inquiry is only now coming to a head, with bosses at Entain bracing for a “substantial financial penalty” under a deferred prosecution agreement currently being finalised with the Crown Prosecution Service. Analysts have estimated that it could be about £230m.
