He defrauded TCU Place of tens of thousands of dollars. Now, Brad Hache has been sentenced, and he's surprised with the outcome.

The former TCU Place employee pleaded guilty to fraud. He stole $143,000 from his employer to feed a gambling habit, and says he expected to be heading to jail. Instead, Hache has been sentenced to two years house arrest.

Hache took the money from TCU Place over a four week period in the fall of 2010, as well as draining his family's finances, to feed his gambling addiction.

Hache says he's filled with shame and regret over what he's done. But his lawyer, Mark Vanstone, says the sentence is appropriate, even if Hache was expecting something more severe. "We think it's a fitting result that illustrates the tragic consequences for someone dealing with a gambling addiction."

In addition to the two year sentence, Hache will have to pay back the money he stole. He says he is working through his addiction to pay back the cash. "As a gambler they're just credits, so now I'm in the process of learning what $143,000 is.

In handing down her sentence, the judge said Hache is a low risk to re-offend, and his crime was motivated by a gambling disorder, rather than greed.

Hache hopes his bad experience can be a lesson to his kids. "(I want to) teach them to make good choices. Whereas I made bad choices - stole some money and bad things happen."

Hache will go back to his job in the oil patch in the Kindersley area, and start chipping away at the $143,000 debt.