Slot machine firm fined £95,000 over cancer patient's gambling

A high street slot-machine operator was fined almost £100,000 by the gambling regulator yesterday after the Guardian revealed how staff had allegedly exploited a vulnerable cancer patient.

- Rob Davies

Wendy Hughes, then 64, lost nearly £2,000 in the Stockport branch of Merkur Slots UK over the course of two spells lasting 16 hours in November 2023, months after she was diagnosed with lung cancer.

Staff at the branch, which has a 24-hour licence, knew she was going out to fetch more money from the cash machine as her losses piled up.

Hughes, who became addicted to betting while working for a bookmaker, died before the Gambling Commission issued its verdict, her daughter Jackie Olden said.