SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio fuel truck driver turned himself in to face misdemeanor charges Thursday after he was accused of stealing lottery tickets from an East Side convenience store then trying to cash them in at a different convenience store across town.
Richard Smith, 39, faces Class A misdemeanor charges of theft and claiming a lottery ticket by fraud, according to two arrest warrants obtained by the KSAT 12 Defenders.
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Surveillance video captured inside a 7-Eleven in the 400 block of Fair Avenue on Feb. 21 showed Smith, who was at the convenience store to deliver fuel, enter the store's back office, according to the warrants.
The video shows Smith looking down at a box containing "Ultimate 7's" scratch-off lottery tickets before exiting the office, the warrants state.
The footage then shows Smith entering the office a second time, this time with his shirt untucked, before walking out of view, according to the warrants.
The missing tickets were then reported to the San Antonio Police Department and the Texas Lottery Commission.
The warrants state that surveillance video at a second 7-Eleven in the 7200 block of Culebra Road, showed Smith two days later attempting to validate several of the scratch-off tickets from the stolen box.
Smith was unable to cash in a $70 winning ticket because it had already been reported stolen, according to the warrants.
He was told to file a claim with the Texas Lottery, according to the warrants.
Smith denied any wrongdoing when questioned by SAPD last month, and instead said he had purchased the lottery tickets he attempted to redeem, the warrants state.
Smith's claims conflicted with information provided by the Texas Lottery, according to the warrants.
Bexar County court records indicate that Smith had a family assault charge against him dismissed last year because of a missing witness.