He stole from his child's account to fuel gambling addiction

In what he described as the lowest point in his life, a cyber-security specialist stole a few thousand dollars from a savings account meant for his daughter so that he could keep gambling.

- Theresa Tan

The 35-year-old, who gave only his surname as Mr Sow, peeped to find out his wife's password for the account under her name. "I stole the money to top up my betting account," he said.

He had lost at least $500,000 from football matches since getting addicted to illegal gambling sites in his teens and ended up owing both legal and illegal moneylenders.

Still, the father of three young children continued. "I was betting every day in the toilet, at work and on the bus or train." Mr Sow started betting on football matches at the age of 15. Two years later, he was introduced by friends to illegal online gambling sites.