It was a consequence for sure if you don't gamble responsively I mean this is probably a debt thing and probably the worst thing that you could do in gambling is to loan and gamble it. It might be a good start if you win but your problem will be huge if you lose your money anyway. Surely he has some mental problems kidnapping your granddaughter for gambling is not something that you're going to think of as a normal person, he's eaten by his gambling habits and it's getting out of hand.
I know a lot of gambling addicts that gamble a lot probably every day they don't care if they lose the money but it's a great thing if they win, but this kind of thing doesnt even landed on their minds once. Some just of my friends just want to get entertain and have some fun but they steal to gamble or kill anything that is against the law.
When someone gets old, they already start losing their ability to think critically or have enough understanding and control over their emotions, and on top of that if someone is addicted to gambling, that is a deadly combination and that is what this guy had, he was old and addicted to gambling, so when he needed money to gamble or maybe had to pay loans taken from somewhere, he went for something this evil.
You lose the ability to think when you are under too much tension or stress, all you keep thinking about is how you can get out of the situation that you've got yourself into, and a lot of evil thoughts come into your mind but it depends on how much control you have on your thoughts and feelings to avoid those thoughts and ideas.