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WOW, TALK ABOUT ADDICTION: Woman stole $2.3M to buy lottery tickets
Insider Buzz: WOW, TALK ABOUT ADDICTION: Woman stole $2.3M to buy lottery tickets
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This is not the kind of jackpot one Long Island woman probably had in mind. The former bookkeeper for a doctors' office pleaded guilty Wednesday to second-degree grand larceny, admitting she stole more than $2.3 million that she used to buy lottery tickets. Prosecutors, who described the bookkeeper as having a gambling addiction, said the woman spent as much as $6,000 a day playing various lotto and scratch-off lottery games. "She spent most of it to feed her pathological addiction," said Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota. Annie Donnelly, 38, of Farmingville, faces 4-to-12 years in prison when she is sentenced on Sept. 20, for stealing the money from her employers — Great South Bay Surgical Associates. Donnelly, who is being held on $150,000 bail, also will have to repay the stolen money. Other than to admit her crime, Donnelly made no other comments during her brief appearance before state Supreme Court Justice Robert Doyle. A telephone call to an office manager at Great South Bay Surgical Associates seeking comment was not immediately returned. Assistant District Attorney Donna Planty said that between June 2002 and November 2005, Donnelly wrote company checks for cash, petty cash, or checks payable to herself and then falsely listed them as payments to vendors associated with the medical office. The average check was for less than $3,000 and Donnelly wrote them in oddly-numbered amounts instead of round numbers to avoid being caught, prosecutors said. She also would "move money around" to different accounts within the business ledgers to elude discovery. Most of the lottery tickets were purchased at a greeting cards store near her home. The stolen money was discovered when a bank called one of the physicians to say his checks were bouncing. In the first year Donnelly stole $41,261 from the office. Each year, the thefts increased, with Donnelly stealing $1,381,927 in 2005. In all, more than $2.3 million was taken, Planty said. "She obviously had a gambling problem," Planty said. "She appeared to be caught up in the high of winning." Planty said investigators believe Donnelly may have won some small jackpots of $5,000 or even $25,000, but it was never enough to cover the amount she had stolen overall. Defense attorney George Vlachos declined to speak with reporters outside the courtroom.
AP
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33 comments. Last comment 3 years ago by .
United States Member #12856 March 18, 2005 2060 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 3:48 pm - IP Logged |
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Yeah, I think she has a gambling problem. I can't believe that she got away with over 2 million dollars before being caught. I guess she did a good job of hiding her theft.  Dance like no one is watching.
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Holt MI United States Member #2283 September 4, 2003 53 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 3:53 pm - IP Logged |
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Yeow! 6k a day, that makes me feel real good about my 10 dollar a day habit.
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New Jersey United States Member #18150 June 28, 2005 14528 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 3:55 pm - IP Logged |
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She Gambled (Twice):
1. Stole from her Employers
2. Bet on Games of Chance
and Lost (Thrice):
1. The Games of Chance
1. Her Freedom
2. Must Repay the Stolen Money
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roseville, MI United States Member #6087 July 30, 2004 16119 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 4:09 pm - IP Logged |
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Wow....would of been better off....taking 2.3 million and live on an island some where.....lol lol .....some people's kids...lol  ALL IN!
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Coastal Georgia United States Member #2703 October 30, 2003 1868 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 4:11 pm - IP Logged |
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This is really sad... She should have called the gambling addiction hot line a long time ago.... If you need to win you need to quit, as the saying goes..... DD
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mid-Ohio United States Member #9 March 24, 2001 10510 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 5:52 pm - IP Logged |
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This woman didn't have a gambling problem, she had a stealing problem and was stupid to boot. Why would any reasonable person steel $6000 to buy scratch-off lottery tickets that probably didn't have a $6000 prize even on a winner and if it did, they would have to pay out $1000 of it in taxes. * What happens most *
* will most likely happen again *
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Coastal Georgia United States Member #2703 October 30, 2003 1868 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 5:59 pm - IP Logged |
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This woman didn't have a gambling problem, she had a stealing problem and was stupid to boot. Why would any reasonable person steel $6000 to buy scratch-off lottery tickets that probably didn't have a $6000 prize even on a winner and if it did, they would have to pay out $1000 of it in taxes. You are correct about the stupid part, but I disagree about the gambling problem. If gambling wasn't the problem, why then did she not just spend it on something else, like cars, jewelry, trips, etc.... ?
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Wandering Aimlessly United States Member #25708 November 5, 2005 4379 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 7:04 pm - IP Logged |
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Yeow! 6k a day, that makes me feel real good about my 10 dollar a day habit. YEOW! $10 dollars a day? That makes me feel better about my $10 a week habit.  "Planty said investigators believe Donnelly may have won some small jackpots of $5,000 or even $25,000, but it was never enough to cover the amount she had stolen overall." Oy! So this means that a woman who spent over $2.3 million playing didn't win a big jackpot? Not too encouraging for someone betting $500 to $1,000 a year.
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mid-Ohio United States Member #9 March 24, 2001 10510 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 7:29 pm - IP Logged |
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YEOW! $10 dollars a day? That makes me feel better about my $10 a week habit. "Planty said investigators believe Donnelly may have won some small jackpots of $5,000 or even $25,000, but it was never enough to cover the amount she had stolen overall." Oy! So this means that a woman who spent over $2.3 million playing didn't win a big jackpot? Not too encouraging for someone betting $500 to $1,000 a year. Maybe she should have come to LP and got some advice on how to win, there's people here who claim with the right system and enough money one can make a profit. Or she could have bought a premium memberships and spent $50 (fantasy money) per day per over 100 different lotteries and lost a lot less. * What happens most *
* will most likely happen again *
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Wandering Aimlessly United States Member #25708 November 5, 2005 4379 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 7:46 pm - IP Logged |
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So if someone wins with stolen money, does she get to keep the prize money? What if she did win a big jackpot and then was convicted of theft? Wouldn't this be similar to using another person's credit card to play the lottery?
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GARNER, NC United States Member #2622 October 21, 2003 18 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 8:06 pm - IP Logged |
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That makes me feel better about my 6 dollars a week habit. It is a game of chance, it only takes one ticket to win!
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United States Member #91 January 19, 2002 6265 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 8:24 pm - IP Logged |
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So if someone wins with stolen money, does she get to keep the prize money? What if she did win a big jackpot and then was convicted of theft? Wouldn't this be similar to using another person's credit card to play the lottery? If it was my money and she won with it I would have settled out of court for about half the jackpot, anybody wonder about 2 million plus disappearing, this guy had to be making 10 times that much to not miss it .. regardless of how she cooked the books
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Maryland United States Member #10659 January 14, 2005 3291 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 9:08 pm - IP Logged |
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If it was my money and she won with it I would have settled out of court for about half the jackpot, anybody wonder about 2 million plus disappearing, this guy had to be making 10 times that much to not miss it .. regardless of how she cooked the books I was wondering the same thing, that and I wonder how many other people are stealing from this company. It sounds like it's as easy as stealing candy from a baby. litebets Feeling, PRICELESS!!!
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United States Member #10921 January 23, 2005 853 Posts Offline |
| Posted: August 23, 2006, 11:07 pm - IP Logged |
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One thing to be very thankful for: IF YOU WERE NOT THE POOR PERSON STANDING IN LINE BEHIND HER waiting to play your $6 or $10! I'm known to wait 15 or 20 minutes for someone playing "only" $100.
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