Maidstone United winger and ex-England C star Blair Turgott accused of gambling £16,000 with stolen card

Maidstone United winger Blair Turgott is accused of gambling £16,000 using a bank card stolen from a pensioner but the 23-year-old claims he was given the card to repay a debt.
The ex-West Ham and England C forward, who played once for both club and country, withdrew two lots of gambling chips worth around £8,000 at the Playboy Casino in Mayfair, Southwark Crown Court was told.
Turgott cashed out £900 in profit at the end of the night in 2016 and denies fraud and converting criminal property, the court heard.
Prosecutor Kaj Scarsbrook said the card used by Turgott was stolen from Peter Dixon on 30 September 2016.
A man described as “white, mid-20s” collected the 85-year-old’s debit card so a new one could be issued after Mr Dixon was contacted by someone posing as a Barclay’s Bank employee.
Tugott says the card was given to him by a friend called Ali, who he went to casinos together after meeting through a friend.
The former Bromley and Stevenage star leant Ali £16,000 for a job interview in property development in Uganda.
Turgott says Ali delayed repaying him for around seven months until Ali gave him Mr Dixon’s card and PIN number, claiming it was his friend who was letting him use it because he lost his own one.
Tugott admitted in court he was “confused” why the card had Mr Dixon’s name on it until he was “reassured” by Ali.
As proof he had permission to use the card, Turgott, who is on loan at the Stones from Boreham Wood, was shown WhatsApp messages by Ali that said “bro I have sent the money”.
Maidstone United declined to comment.
The trial continues.