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Coroner Orders Prevention Report on Unlicensed Gambling After Inquest Into Oliver Long’s Death

Evidence showed offshore sites reachable after UK self-exclusion target people already in harm, prompting the coroner’s formal warning to government.

Overview

  • The East Sussex coroner recorded a short-form conclusion of suicide for the 36-year-old, whose February 2024 death was due to multiple injuries after a fall from height.
  • A Prevention of Future Deaths report will be sent to the Department of Health, the Department for Education, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
  • Long’s family told the court gambling "made him believe he was better off dead," citing escalating losses including £20,000 in April 2023 after he moved to unlicensed sites following UK self-exclusion in 2022.
  • The Gambling Commission said unlicensed operators deliberately target people already experiencing harm, some linked to criminal networks, and reported more than 81,000 URLs removed from search results.
  • Officials highlighted current limits on tackling overseas sites and pointed to £26 million in Budget funding over three years and a forthcoming Crime and Policing Bill to enable IP and domain blocking.