Betika’s integrity and accountability are now under scrutiny as the company risks a legal dispute for allegedly withholding the winning prize of bettor Nelson Kipkogei Melly.
Melly alleges that Betika has breached his trust and violated his account privileges by failing to pay out his winnings and using his account to place bets on other teams without his permission.
Okinyo and Company Advocates, a legal firm representing Melly, has filed a formal complaint against Betika, alleging that the company has failed to honour its obligation to pay out winnings in the amount of Sh477,590 to Melly.
The letter says, “You have refused and continue to refuse to pay our client his bet amount won of Ksh 477,590/= (four hundred and seventy-seven thousand, five hundred and ninety),” the demand letter read. You have accessed and illegally used our client account to bet for other teams to justify the loss of the amount won”.
The complaint letter also details that Melly placed a virtual bet on October 16, 2023, at 5:46 a.m., with a stake of Sh113,712.
Okinyo and Company Advocates stretched further to notify both the Data Protection Agency and the Betting Control and Licensing Board, who are now taking steps to investigate this alleged breach of contract by Betika.
The legal firm also warned Betika sternly, stating that legal action would be taken if the situation was not resolved promptly and appropriately.
“Take notice that unless we receive your written admission of liability within the next one day from the date herein, we have mandatory instructions to institute legal proceedings against you for recovery to protect our client’s interest at your own risk to the sequel costs” – Letter of Demand by Okinyo and Company Advocates.
The possibility of legal action against Betika has caused concern within the betting industry, as the outcome of this case could have far-reaching consequences for other companies in the betting sector.