Supabets fails to redeem winning tickets in Kumasi
There was commotion at the Asafo office of Supabets, a licensed betting company, when about 50 young men, most of them unemployed, held officials of the company hostage for hours for failing to redeem their winning tickets after last Monday’s Israeli league matches.
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The all-boys invasion brought activities at the VIP Station to a temporary halt, while police sources said they were investigating the incident.
The Asokwa District Police Commander, DSP Mr George Bawa, confirmed the incident to the Daily Graphic, but said he was yet to be properly briefed.
Hopes dashed
The boys, who pleaded anonymity, told the Daily Graphic in separate interviews that they had banked their hopes on the results of the matches between Hapoel Beer Sheva F/C and Beitar Jerusalem F/C and Hapoel Raanana and Maccabi Tel Aviv to transform their lives but were short-changed after winning their bets.
The odds for the matches were between one and six goals, which meant that the goals in each match should not exceed six and must not be less than one.
Matches
The first match ended 2-0 in favour of Beer Sheva, while the second ended in a 1-1 draw. However, when the young men stormed the Asafo office to redeem their winning tickets, officials of Supabets said there was an error in the odds from its headquarters in Accra.
A notice posted on its notice board read: “Note that there were incorrect odds displayed on certain leagues. Supabets will be resetting all the tickets with correct odds and the tickets can be paid out.”
But the notice contradicted the company’s prior notice to stakers, which stated: “Please check your tickets, as errors cannot be corrected once the event (match) has started.”
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Workers of Supabets have refused to comment on the matter, with each of them referring the Daily Graphic to its office in Accra.
Daily Graphic checks at Afful Nkwanta, a suburb of Kumasi, where those who won were few, indicated that the company, even with the same mistakes, managed to pay the winners but was reluctant to pay those who won at Asafo, apparently because of the huge number of winners.