A father reported his son to the police for spending nearly £3,000 on Xbox games using the family business credit card.
Ian Holmes went to the police when he learnt that his son Daniel could not pay the £2,800 bill, North Devon Magistrates Court heard on Friday (August 15).
Daniel, 20, of Ilfracombe, had permission to use the card for business expenses, as he had an investment in the family business. However, he also used the card to pay for gaming points and online subscriptions.
'Microsoft Points' is an online currency that allows users to unlock new features in games.
Daniel made 77 payments to Xbox Live during 2013, which totaled £2,400 - with interest this reached £2,800, the court was told.
Ian, who does not own a games console, was alerted to the spending when he noticed multiple payments from his account to Microsoft Xbox Live, the highest of which was £63.99.
Lyndsey Baker, for the prosecution, said: "He confronted his son and he admitted it, but his father knew he could not pay it."
Tim Hook, for the defence, told the court that the matter had only come before them because Mr Holmes realised his unemployed son was unable to repay the debt at the required rate of £200 a month.
"His father asked him to repay it," said Mr Hook. "He said he was extremely annoyed and 'could hit him'.
"It is sad this domestic matter was put to the police," he added.
Presiding magistrate Michael Buckley said: "This is a very sad case."
Daniel admitted fraud. He must repay £2,097.88 and do 100 hours of unpaid work.