Five Former Employees Indicted in Italy Over Alleged Lottery Fraud
Authorities accuse the suspects of exploiting system credentials to identify winning tickets and orchestrate a multi-million-euro scheme.
Five former employees of the state concessionaire for the Gratta e Vinci lottery in Italy have been summoned to trial by the Regional Prosecutor's Office of the Court of Auditors for the Lazio region. The suspects are accused of causing a public financial loss exceeding 25 million euros.
Investigators from the Financial Police in Rome revealed that the former workers allegedly leveraged their access credentials to the company's computer systems. By manipulating the servers, they reportedly identified four winning lottery tickets—two worth 7 million euros each and two worth 5 million euros each—before the tickets were sent to retail locations.
According to the investigation, the winning tickets were subsequently purchased by relatives and associates of the suspects. The authorities stated that this illicit use of insider information eliminated the element of chance, allowing the individuals to claim massive prizes that otherwise might have remained unclaimed in state coffers.
In response to the findings, the Court of Auditors issued a conservation seizure decree for assets totaling more than 25 million euros to guarantee the credit owed to the Customs and Monopolies Agency. The seizure includes 25 real estate units, such as apartments, small villas, garages, and cellars across various provinces, along with five vehicles and financial assets.
The defense arguments submitted following the initial notice of action were deemed insufficient by the authorities to counter the allegations. The designated judge will now review the case in a council chamber to decide whether to confirm, modify, or revoke the asset freeze prior to the conclusion of the accountability proceedings.
Meanwhile, broader data on gaming habits released by Istat show that scratch tickets remain the most widespread form of cash-prize gaming in Italy. Approximately 25.1 percent of the population aged 14 and older participated in the game, far surpassing other forms of wagering such as traditional lotteries, numbers games, slot machines, and live casino table games.
Sources
- "Gratta e vinci", arrestati 5 ex dipendenti della società con le pasword giuste per i biglietti vincenti blitzquotidiano.it
- Casinò dal vivo in Italia: cosa dice l'Istat su roulette e baccarat e come funziona il tavolo in streaming - gazzettinonline.it
- Bari, l’asfalto nuovo si apre dopo appena tre mesi a San Giorgio: il Comune diffida Aqp dopo i lavori quintopotere.it