Lottery thief has been sent to prison

A man who was trusted with managing a works National Lottery syndicate stole it’s winnings and then filed a false police claim saying that he had been robbed at knifepoint. The lottery thief has been sent to prison for perverting the course of justice.

Imagine how you would feel if you became a National Lottery winner only to have it stolen form you by a supposed friend and colleague. Steven Drew from Nottingham ran a works lottery syndicate while working at John Wiley and Sons publishing firm in Bognor Regis but instead of sharing the winnings with his workmates he stole the money then falsely accused a group of holiday makers of armed robbery. Eight innocent people were arrested and detained due to Drew’s bogus claim. Following a thorough investigation the holiday makers were released without charge and lottery thief, Drew was arrested and charged.

The lottery thief has been sent to prison, given an eight month sentence on Friday at Chichester Crown Court for perverting the course of justice and also for the actual theft of the lottery winnings. Speaking after the court hearing DC Alex Campbell, of Sussex Police, said “We hope this will act as a deterrent to others who feel they can report false crimes in order to hide their own criminal activity and waste the time of the police and the criminal justice system”.

Lottery syndicates have been around for years and will surely continue but if you would prefer to keep all of the winnings for yourself you must buy your own tickets as opposed to stealing your colleague’s winnings! You can buy tickets for many of the world’s biggest lotteries right here at Online-Lotto safe in the knowledge that nobody else can get their hands on your winnings.