A South Carolina man tried to be sneaky about turning in some winning lottery tickets, but turns out they were actually someone else's and he allegedly stole the activation codes from social media posts, according to authorities.
The stolen codes
Around 8:00 p.m. on July 7, James Antonio Cheeseboro, 40, attempted to pass multiple lottery tickets at Quick Pantry 21, located at 1096 John C. Calhoun Drive in Orangeburg, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
Cheeseboro intended to defraud and unlawfully pass these lottery tickets from the South Carolina Education Lottery at the store, according to the arrest warrant obtained by WCIV.
Authorities claim Cheeseboro knowingly took the activation code for the ticket from a social media post made by the victim. He then gave those numbers to his manager, who manually entered them into the SCEL terminal at Quick Pantry 21.
Cheeseboro allegedly redeemed the tickets for cash winnings worth $445 for his gain, police said. He did this without the consent of the ticket purchaser.
The incident was captured on store video, and Cheeseboro was identified by store management.
The arrest
On July 18, Cheeseboro was arrested and charged with intent to defraud, counterfeit game tickets, authorities said. He was booked into the Orangeburg County Detention Center.
Officials said the case will be prosecuted by the 1st Circuit Solicitor's Office.
SCEL has reason to celebrate
While the SCEL wouldn't celebrate someone trying to defraud them of money, they would celebrate when one of their own wins a big award!
They recently announced that Julie Huffman, Communication Coordinator, was honored with the top award in the lottery industry. Huffman received the 2024 Powers Award at a North American Association of State and Provincial Lottery's ceremony, which was held last week in Omaha, Nebraska.
This award is given to exceptional individuals in the lottery industry whose critical thinking, creativity, intelligence, and dedication to their trade have made a lasting impact. The award honors the late Edward J. Powers, the “Father of U.S. Lotteries,” who built the framework and set the standards for today's lottery operation in his 25+ year career.
Huffman has been working with the Lottery for 17 years and most people know her as an on-screen draw talent. She has a true knack of engaging winners to tell their stories on the social media accounts for SCEL.
Huffman is also the host of “Ticket Crafting with Julie” on YouTube. She recorded her 21st episode in February. The show focuses on Huffman's artistic ability to remake everyday objects out of voided lottery tickets.
Dolly Garfield, Executive Director of the South Carolina Education Lottery, said:
I want to congratulate Julie on this well-deserved honor. Julie's abundance of creativity, her charisma, her flair, and her dedication to the Lottery's mission, all make her a worthy recipient of this distinguished award. We are delighted to see her hard work nationally recognized.
Enjoy playing the South Carolina Lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.
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