SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio police accuse a store clerk of pocketing lottery tickets worth $31,000.
Police arrested 37-year-old Mayra Rios Wednesday. They charge her with felony theft and felony lottery fraud.
Jennifer Rodriguez, a department spokesperson, said the Texas Lottery Commission alerted the High Time Smoke and Vape Shop owner that bundles of lottery tickets were missing from his facility.
He checked surveillance video from inside the store and told investigators he caught Rios pocketing ticket bundles when she restocked their dispensers.
Between October and December, Rios allegedly stashed hundreds of tickets in her bag. Police say she cashed the scratch-offs for $21,000.
Investigators say they've collected surveillance video of Rios turning in her winners at HEBs and Wal-Marts around San Antonio and in Laredo.
San Antonio police said more people are stealing lottery ticket bundles in San Antonio. Officers arrested a man last month for stealing cabinets full of lottery tickets from three different stores on the south side.
"It's just not worth taking part in this type of crime. It doesn't matter if you call it in, if you go in person, or if you mail it in. There's always a way to track back to you," Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez added that she presumes Rios will have to pay back her winnings plus the value of the missing tickets, a total of $52,000.
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