"It Is Possible to Rig Lottery Results by Changing Ball Weights"...Gang Swindles 700 Million Won Promising Winning Numbers

Deceived victims by saying "We will tell you the winning lottery numbers"
Sentenced to 4 years and 6 months and 2 years and 6 months in prison on fraud charges

A group of scammers who swindled more than 700 million won by falsely claiming they knew someone at the lottery operator and could provide winning numbers has been sentenced to prison.

On the 22nd, the Criminal Division 1 of the Western Branch of the Busan District Court (Presiding Judge Kim Joo-gwan) announced that it had sentenced ringleaders A (in their 30s) and B (in their 30s), who were indicted on charges including fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes, to four years and six months in prison and two years and six months in prison, respectively.

An office worker purchasing a lottery ticket on a mobile device in an office. The photograph is for illustrative purposes to help readers understand the article and is not directly related to the text. Photo by Yonhap News

"It is possible to rig the draw by making the balls lighter"...Set up an office and pocketed 770 million won

The two were charged with defrauding three victims of about 776 million won by deceiving them with the claim, "We will tell you the winning lottery numbers," from November 2023 to July last year.

They set up an office in Jung District, Busan, registered a business, and operated an online site. Targeting paid members of the site, they lied, saying, "We know someone at the lottery operator, so if you give us money, we will pass it on to that person," and "We can obtain the winning numbers," and "We can make the balls lighter so that the desired numbers will win."

During the trial, the defendants argued, "We received the money as compensation for providing services, so this does not constitute fraud." However, the court stated, "The victims handed over the money under the mistaken belief that it would be delivered to a third party through the defendants, and it was not paid as compensation or a fee for services, so we do not accept their claim," adding, "In determining the sentence, we took into account that most of the damage has not been recovered and that the defendants attempted to conceal evidence during the investigation."

A citizen is buying a lottery ticket with a bright expression. The Asia Business Daily DB

Endless 'lottery rigging' rumors, but the truth is..."Rigging is absolutely impossible"

Rumors of lottery rigging have persisted steadily since the early days of the lottery system. To directly dispel these suspicions, the Lottery Commission under the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the competent ministry, even commissioned research services in 2023 from two specialized institutions, the Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA) and the Statistical Research Institute of Seoul National University, to verify the possibility of manipulation. Both institutions concluded that tampering during the lottery drawing process is impossible, and that cases of multiple simultaneous winners fall well within the range that is statistically likely to occur.

The Commission stated, "The drawing is broadcast live nationwide, and before the broadcast, the proper operation of the drawing machine and the weight and size of the lottery balls are checked in advance in the presence of police officers and ordinary citizens, so there is no possibility of manipulation."