CITIZENS NEWS

Texas Lottery Commission and its former director indicted in $95 million lotto scheme

By jacobthomas // 2026-05-18

• The Texas Lottery Commission and former director Gary Grief were criminally charged for abuse of official capacity after a $95 million Lotto Texas draw in April 2023.
• Prosecutors allege Grief approved a scheme where professional bettors purchased virtually all 25 million ticket combinations, ensuring they would win while ordinary players had no chance.
• Lottery officials provided extra terminals and paper, ignored rule violations and conducted a perfunctory after-game investigation that failed to identify misconduct.
• Australian gambler Zeljko Ranogajec and London-based Bernard Marantelli were identified as principals behind the operation, which netted Rook TX $57.8 million.
• Grief's attorney called the indictment the product of politics, while Gov. Greg Abbott ordered the Texas Rangers to investigate and Grief is ordered to appear in court on June 26.

The Texas Lottery Commission and its former director, Gary Grief, have been criminally charged in connection with a $95 million Lotto Texas draw in April 2023, following a two-year investigation by the Houston Chronicle that exposed how state officials helped international gamblers secure a guaranteed win at the expense of everyday players. Court records show the Travis County District Attorney's Office issued summonses for Grief and the commission on Wednesday, May 13, accusing them of abuse of official capacity, a first-degree felony. Prosecutors allege the defendants misused government property, services, personnel or any other thing of value belonging to the government with intent to harm or defraud another, pegging the value of the alleged misconduct at more than $300,000. For an individual, the crime carries penalties of up to 99 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. For an association or agency, the penalty is a $20,000 fine or the amount of money gained or lost due to the misconduct. The April 22, 2023, Lotto Texas draw saw professional bettors purchase virtually every possible six-number combination, more than 25 million tickets, ensuring they would have a jackpot winner. The scheme generated tens of millions in profits for the gamblers while ordinary players had no chance of winning outright. As noted by BrightU.AI's Enoch, participants said Grief was aware of the operation from the start, pre-approving the scheme despite it being unfair to regular players who purchased tickets unaware they could at best only tie for the jackpot with a player assured of holding a winning ticket before the draw was even held. Grief has denied giving the go-ahead. To process and print the millions of tickets in the 72 hours between lotto draws, organizers needed dozens of official state lottery terminals and paper. Lottery officials went above and beyond to assist the team, quickly providing extra machines and pallets of paper with no questions asked, including to three retailers that had sold barely any tickets in the months prior. Lottery executives from other states described Texas' official help as unusual. As the operation got underway, lottery officials turned a blind eye to several apparent rules violations that, had they been enforced, would have prevented the scheme from being carried out. No other player guessed the right six-number combination and two months after the draw, the State of Texas handed an entity called Rook TX a $57.8 million check. The company collected another $2.5 million from lesser prizes. The lottery commission typically audits large jackpots to ensure they are legitimate, but the agency's after-game investigation of the April 2023 draw was perfunctory and failed to identify any misconduct. A second investigation following the Chronicle's reporting confirmed that the gambling group appeared to have violated state rules.

Criminal charges filed over controversial 2023 Lotto Texas operation

Texas law allows lottery prizes over $1 million to be claimed anonymously. But the Chronicle identified Zeljko Ranogajec, an enigmatic Australian said to wager billions of dollars a year and known as The Joker, and Bernard Marantelli, a London-based gambler, as likely principals behind the operation. Both have since acknowledged their participation, Ranogajec as a funder and Marantelli as the Texas point person. The revelations spurred two state investigations. In February 2025, Gov. Greg Abbott ordered the Texas Rangers to investigate the drawing. Attorney General Ken Paxton said his office also would investigate. Sources said the Ranger investigation was the foundation for the criminal charges. In a written statement, Sam Bassett, Grief's attorney, said: "The indictment returned by the Travis County Grand Jury is the product of politics, not facts demonstrating a crime. Gary cooperated with the Texas Ranger investigation but neither he nor his counsel had input with the Grand Jury. The Rangers had their direction from politicians searching for a scapegoat. When all facts are revealed in court, the public will see that Gary's leadership at the Lottery Commission generated millions of dollars for Texas schools and veterans and there was no crime." The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which now administers the lottery, responded with a statement: "As this matter is now before the courts, we are not commenting. We respect the judicial process and TDLR remains focused on carrying out its work in keeping with its commitment to public safety, trust and integrity." Court records show a grand jury indicted Grief in mid-April. A day later prosecutors filed, then dismissed charges, in what appears to have been a procedural snafu. In a February 2025 legislative hearing, Greg Potts, an executive for Lottery.com, which was affiliated with two of the retailers that participated in the big buy, testified that a representative from the company had called Grief prior to the operation to check if the state would permit it. Potts said he fully expected the director to say no. Instead, "we were very surprised that the answer was yes," Potts told legislators. "As a person and a lottery player, I cannot believe they said yes. I was shocked." Potts also confirmed the agency was fully aware that one of Lottery.com's facilities was in violation of state rules and did nothing. "We just need to call in the Texas Rangers immediately," Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, a Brenham Republican, said. "You've got this Gary Grief guy out there who has enabled or helped to promote having this money laundering going on," Sen. Carol Alvarado, a Houston Democrat, added. "He's out there with no criminal charges or consequences." Fallout from the April 2023 Lotto Texas draw also spurred several lawsuits. One, filed by the winner of the following jackpot claiming the Rook TX win was illegitimate so his prize should include their winnings, is ongoing. Grief is ordered to appear in court on June 26. Watch this video about the ongoing Texas lottery win investigation. This video is from the TrendingNews channel on Brighteon.com. Sources include: X.com HoustonChronicle.com Brighteon.com BrightU.ai

conspiracy lottery fraud deception lies rigged criminal charges money supply Ken Paxton Texas Lottery Commission Gary Grief Lotto Texas first-degree felony professional gamblers ticket buying scheme Zeljko Ranogajec Bernard Marantelli Rook TX Lottery.com Houston Chronicle investigation court summons