Charges laid after lottery scratch tickets tampered with across GTA
![OPP An Ontario Provincial Police cruiser sits outside of a press conference in Vaughan, Ont., on June 20, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Lahodynskyj](/content/dam/cp24/en/images/2022/8/18/opp-1-6032790-1663776417602.jpg)
An Ontario man has been charged after lottery tickets were tampered with and sold to customers.
Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) say they launched an investigation in Ontario after individuals across the Greater Toronto Area reported that their scratch tickets had already been scratched.
According to police, tickets at multiple locations were being tampered with and placed back into ticket displays. The store clerks had no knowledge of the tampering, officials said.
On Dec. 6, police brought a suspect into custody in connection with the investigation.
Pickering resident Stephen Michael Dea, 44, has been charged with four counts of fraud under $5,000 and four counts of theft under $5,000.
The suspect is not an employee at any of the retail stores that sold the tampered tickets.
The charges have not been proven in court.
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