A local Sherriff in Michigan has undertaken an investigation into reports of fraudulent credit card lottery ticket purchases across the state.
According to a report in Cheboygan News, the County Sherriff Dale Clarmont has begun to investigate reports that over the last two weeks, three stores have been the victim of credit card fraud in relation to the purchase of lottery tickets.
The reports allege that two men bought masses of scratch-off tickets priced between $3,600 and $5,000. It is only several days after the purchase that the stores realise that the credit cards used to purchase the tickets are stolen.
Clarmont told the Cheboygan News: “Two black males enter the party store and purchase a full bundle of scratch-off lottery tickets. The last stolen purchase occurred as recently as December 6.”
The Sherriff added that he is in discussions with the Michigan Lottery to report all those tickets purchased with stolen credit cards to avoid paying any potential winnings.
“We are working with the State Lottery Commission to see where these tickets may be cashed in and attempting to identify the suspects to further the investigation,” he added.
Clarmont is also communicating with other police departments in Michigan to see if there are similar crimes occurring state-wide.
Lottery fraud has been hitting the headlines recently and, in the UK, data from Action Fraud, the national reporting centre for cybercrime and fraudulent activity, has detailed that almost £1m has been stolen by lottery fraudsters over the last seven months.