Jury discharged in trial of ex-West Ham footballer accused of gambling using stolen card
Blair Turgott, pictured during a spell at Leyton Orient, was on trial at Southwark Crown Court Picture: Simon O'Connor - Credit: Archant
The jury trying a former West Ham footballer accused of gambling £16,000 using a pensioner’s stolen credit card has been discharged after failing to reach verdicts.
Winger Blair Turgott, 23, is alleged to have carried out the scam at the Playboy casino in central London’s Park Lane on September 30 2016.
The card used by the former England under-19s player had earlier been stolen from Peter Dixon, 85, by a fraudster posing as a bank employee, a court heard.
Turgott, from Bromley, claimed he was given the card and PIN number by a trusted friend, who owed him £16,000.
The jury deliberated for five hours following a trial at Southwark Crown Court but was discharged by the judge, Recorder Louis Weston, after failing to reach verdicts on charges of fraud and money laundering.
The judge gave prosecutors a week to decide whether to pursue a retrial of Turgott, who denies the charges.
