'Betting scam' duo clear their names; Basketball fans finally get their pounds 3,000 winnings.

Byline: Dan Warburton

TWO basketball fanatics have won a 12-month battle to clear their names after being accused of running a sophisticated internet betting scam.

Solicitor Dave Forrester, from Gateshead, and his friend Paul Nilsen, from Newcastle, thought they had struck the jackpot when a sports accumulator gamble earned them nearly pounds 3,000.

But only hours after their flutter bagged them the big cash prize, their online betting accounts were frozen and they were told they were being investigated for an elaborate online betting scam. They were accused of defrauding the 10Bet website by opening a number of accounts in an effort to make multiple bets.

And despite a series of e-mails, the internet site refused to pay up, prompting Mr Forrester, who lives with his wife Claire, 29, a media manager, to threaten legal action. Now, more than 12 months after originally placing the wager, an arbitration panel has ruled in their favour and said there was nothing to suggest they were breaking the rules.

The panel said: "In the opinion of the panel, 10Bet has not provided us with any evidence that comes even close to demonstrating an organised attempt to defraud the system.

"The fact that the total stakes across the series of bets was so low would appear to put credence to this view, therefore we adjudicate in the favour of the customer." Last night father-of-one Mr Forrester, from Gateshead, who has spent more than 25 years avidly following British basketball, said it was a relief to finally receive the pay-out.

He said: "It was frustrating and it was fundamentally unfair. It was like being cheated. "There is a process in place to deal with this and it proves that if you go down the right avenues then you can claim the money you are owed.

"I was quite chuffed because my wife got to spend the winnings.

"Ultimately, we placed the right bets and we deserved the money. They are happy to take our money when we lose."

Mr Forrester reported the 10Bet website to the Independent Betting Adjudication Service after the scam accusation in December 2008. The pair were owed approximately pounds 2,970 after Mr Forrester placed pounds 42 on a four-piece accumulator, while his friend pledged a total of pounds 27 on the same bet.

The bets relied on the results of four games from the British Basketball League, including a game involving the Newcastle Eagles.

And despite the pair's persistent attempts to contact the betting company about the accusations, they were unable to withdraw their cash - and also lost their stakes and the money that was already in their accounts.

Mr Forrester, 36, who has a 19-month-old son named Rory, said: "Betting on the internet is a big business now and they try to give people the opportunity to bet on as many things as they want because it's so competitive.

"But that's a risk they take if they are going to offer bets on sports like British Basketball."

Last night a spokesman for the 10Bet website said: "We have paid the customers according to IBAS ruling and the case was closed."

CAPTION(S):

WINNER Dave Forrester, who, along with friend Paul Nilsen had been accused of a betting scam.