SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio woman is accused of stealing more than $31,000 worth of Texas Lottery tickets from an East Side convenience store where she worked.
Mayra Alejandra Rios, 37, was escorted to the Bexar County Jail on Wednesday and charged with lottery theft and lottery fraud, according to Jennifer Rodriguez, a public information officer with San Antonio police.
The owner of the store, located at Loop 410 and Rigsby Avenue, learned that he was missing bundles of lottery tickets, which contain about 25-30 tickets each.
The owner reviewed surveillance footage and saw that Rios was activating the missing tickets, Rodriguez said.
He confronted the employee and she confessed to activating them, Rodriguez said. Rios was keeping some tickets for herself and leaving others for sale.
About 30 bundles were taken between October and December.
She earned more than $21,000 with the winning tickets, which she cashed at stores in San Antonio and Laredo, Rodriguez said.
“So a total of more than $52,000 were taken between the stolen bundles of lottery tickets and the winnings,” she said.
Rodriguez said SAPD has been investigating cases where people steal lottery tickets during burglaries and robberies.
She said, “eventually it will catch up with you” because every Texas Lottery ticket is tracked through a number.
The case is under investigation.
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