A former affiliate manager for Nordic online gambling operator Betsson AB has been charged with stealing €153k from the company through the use of fraudulent commissions.

This week, Christiaan Alexander Van Dalen appeared in a court in Malta, where he pleaded not guilty to seven charges, including fraud, money laundering and computer-related offences. Magistrate Charmaine Galea ordered Van Dalen to be held without bail pending further hearings.

The court was told that Van Dalen worked as an affiliate manager for Betsson, which bases its global headquarters in Malta. Betsson has accused Van Dalen, a Dutch national residing in Malta, of ‘retagging’ certain high-value Betsson customers as his own affiliate clients, thereby entitling him to a percentage of these customers’ betting losses.

The court heard that Van Dalen diverted around €35k of the allegedly purloined funds into Philippines bank accounts held by his wife. The whereabouts of the rest of the stolen cash is currently unknown, although prosecutors believe some of it was used to purchase property in the Philippines.