Table 2.
Gambling Suicide Victim’s Characteristics
| Case | Year | Country | Day and time | Age | Education level | Marital status | Money lost (USD) | Employment | Mode of suicide | Location of suicide | Suicide note | Type of betting | Reported reason for suicide |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 [54] | May, 2014 | Uganda | Friday, day | – | Tertiary | – | – | University student | Poison ingestion | Banana Plantation (Garden) | Yes | Soccer betting | Betting with his university tuition fees |
| 2 [55] | December, 2014 | Uganda | Friday, day | 30 | Tertiary | – | 195 | – | Poison ingestion | Garden | No | Card games | Disappointed with the loss |
| 3 [56, 57] | February, 2015 | Uganda | Friday, day | – | – | – | 139 | Boda boda rider | Hanging | Home | Yes | Soccer betting (Arsenal loss to Monaco – European champion League) | Used his employer’s money to bet, then lost (reportedly depressed) |
| 4 [58] | 2016 | Kenya | – | – | Tertiary | Never married | 790 | – | Hanging | Hostel | No | Soccer betting | Losing money on a bet |
| 5 [59] | April, 2016 | Kenya | – | – | – | – | 436 | – | Hanging | – | – | Soccer betting | – |
| 6 [59–61] | July, 2016 | Kenya | Wednesday | 28 | Tertiary | Never married | 741 | University student | Hanging | Home | Yes | Soccer betting (Germany vs. Italy Euro game 2016) | Bet his college tuition fees and lost. |
| 7 [62] | August, 2016 | Kenya | Wednesday | – | – | – | 417 | – | – | Home | No | Soccer betting (SportPesa) – Online | Borrowed the money the Bank, placed all the stake on Real Madrid, and lost |
| 8 [63, 64] | September, 2016 | Uganda | Thursday | – | Tertiary | – | 34 | University student | Poison ingestion. One report (Tusiime, 2016) says attempted suicide and a later report says actual suicide (Ssebwami (2019) | Hostel | No | Soccer betting – Landbased betting store | Used his tuition fees for betting |
| 9 [65, 66] | March, 2017 | Kenya | Thursdaynight | 30 | – | Married with 2 children | 84 | Businessman who used to sell compact discs | Hanging | Home | No | Soccer betting | Failure to win. Depended on the money to pay off debts i.e., bank loan and rent |
| 10 [67, 68] | May, 2018 | Tanzania | Saturday, night | – | Tertiary | – | – | University student | Hanging | Hostel | No | Soccer betting | Losing a bet in Liverpool vs. Madrid match (2018 Champions League final) |
| 11 [69] | September, 2018 | Kenya | Saturday | – | – | – | 556 | – | – | Home | No | Soccer betting – Online | Lost money while in-play betting on a Ghana vs. Kenya match |
| 12 [70] | September, 2018 | Uganda (Indian natives) | Saturday, night | 23 | Tertiary | – | 13,889 | A salesman of a distiller’s company | Hanging | Hotel | No | – | Lost company’s money in betting and had accumulated hotel bills |
| 13 [71] | November, 2017 | Uganda | Wednesday | – | Tertiary | Married | 28 | Secondary school teacher | Hanging | Behind mother home | Yes | Soccer betting | Misused student tuition for betting (i.e., lost money during Uganda win vs. Congo-Brazzaville in a World Cup qualification game) |
| 14 [72, 73] | December, 2018 | Kenya | Wednesday, day | 25 | Tertiary | Married | – | Factory worker | Drowning | Home | No | – | Long standing losses due to betting (betting mission goes sour) |
| 15 [74] | 2018 | Uganda | Saturday | 16 | Secondary | Never married | – | Student | Hanging | Hostel – in his bed room | No | Casino – land-based | Possibly misused tuition fees for gambling in a casino |
| 16 [75] | 2018 | Kenya | – | 32 | – | Never married | – | Caretaker of a block of houses | Hanging | Home | No | Soccer betting | Allegedly hunted down by creditors, hanged self after losing a bet-which he had hoped could help him clear his debts. |
| 17 [76, 77] | December, 2019 | Kenya | Wednesday, night | 27 | Tertiary | – | – | Worked at Kenya Revenue Authority | Carbon monoxide poisoning | Rental | Yes | – | Unsuccessful bets |
| 18 [77–80] | January, 2020 | Kenya | Monday, day | 40 | – | Married | 138,889 | – | Jumping from a height (police allegedly also found some tablets in the deceased’s pocket) | At the casino | No | Casino – land-based | Losing money while gambling at a casino |