No jail for man who organized 50/50 lottery fraud

A man who organized a scheme to defraud thousands of dollars from a community fundraising lottery will not be sent to jail.

Simon Gabriel Edison Hood, 23, was sentenced to five months of house arrest.

• 6 charged in alleged 50/50 draw fraud
• Brother, sister plead guilty in 50/50 scam

At sentencing Monday in Charlottetown provincial court, Hood did not speak.

But he did hand over a cheque for $20,900 to pay back some of the money lost by Murphy Community Centre because of his fraud.

According to agreed facts read in court, Hood was an employee of the community centre when he hatched a scheme to defraud its weekly 50/50 fundraising draw.

Hood conceived the scheme and recruited others

On four occasions, court heard, Hood recruited others to purchase tickets for the draw.

He then made sure he drew their numbered ticket, by intentionally placing the winning ticket in a known location inside the lottery box.

Hood conducted the draws personally.

He then split the winnings with his accomplices.

Wanted to 'help friends'

According to the agreed facts, Hood did it because he was dissatisfied with his job and wanted to "help friends" who were having money trouble.

The community centre lost more than $56,646 as a result of having to re-do the draws that Hood conducted fraudulently.

Hood pleaded guilty.

It is his first criminal offence.

The four fraudulent draws were conducted between January and June, 2016.

Judge John Douglas told court it was Hood who thought up the scheme and recruited others to take part.

The judge said Hood was an employee of the centre at the time, so that makes what he did even worse.

In addition to house arrest, Hood was ordered to perform 50 hours of community service work.

He'll be on probation for a year when his house arrest is over.

He's been ordered to stay away from the Murphy Centre.

Crown prosecutor wants full restitution paid to victim

The crown prosecutor told court the important thing is to make sure Murphy's Community Centre is repaid the money it lost.

Hood still owes $3,000 to the centre.

The crown told the court, the offenders involved in the scheme have agreed to pay their share of restitution.

One other co-accused will appear in court Tuesday.

• MORE P.E.I. NEWS |Furnace shed burns in Mont Carmel
• MORE P.E.I. NEWS |Looking for Ghostman: Lost dog attracts a community of searchers