USP doctor sentenced to 3 years in prison for scamming a lottery outlet in São Paulo out of R$192.
The 32nd Criminal Court of the Central Criminal Forum of Barra Funda sentenced Alicia Dudy Muller Veiga to three years of imprisonment in a semi-open regime. The decision was handed down this Wednesday (26) by Judge Adriana Costa. The doctor, a graduate of the University of São Paulo, defrauded a lottery shop in the South Zone of the capital of São Paulo of R$ 192,9. She is also charged with embezzling almost R$ 1 million from the funds for her medical school graduation party.
The sentence includes a fine equivalent to one minimum wage. The crime occurred when the doctor attempted to place bets totaling R$ 891,5, but only paid R$ 891,53. This is Alicia's second conviction; she had already been sentenced in July 2024 to five years in prison under a semi-open regime for misappropriating funds from the graduation committee. She appealed the first decision, but a new trial has not yet taken place.
How the scam was discovered
The Public Prosecutor's Office has charged the doctor with obtaining an illicit advantage by attempting to pay an amount a thousand times less than what was owed. Alicia requested bets totaling R$ 891,5 and stated that she would make transfers via Pix to settle the amounts at the Oriundi lottery shop, where she habitually placed bets and had developed a relationship of trust with the establishment's manager.
The lottery shop manager became suspicious of the transaction when the bets totaled R$ 193,8. She found that there was only a scheduled transfer, with no actual payment. Employees asked the doctor for proof, and she presented a bank statement for R$ 891,50 before leaving the establishment.
The investigation indicates that Alicia left the lottery shop with five bets worth R$ 38,7 each after a brief discussion. The transaction of R$ 891,53 was made to mislead the employees, simulating that the amount corresponded to the R$ 891,5 previously reported. Prosecutor Vagner Queiroz classified the action as "fraudulent conduct".
In sentencing the young woman, Judge Adriana Costa stated that "the defendant's intent to mislead the lottery manager was evident." The magistrate did not accept the claim that the young woman has psychological problems, including gambling addiction, which would make her actions impulsive and uncontrollable. She cited a report that attested that the former student was fully aware of her actions and, therefore, is accountable.
Betting history
In April 2022, the then-student placed nearly R$20 in bets on Lotofácil. All payments were made via Pix . After that period, she began placing bets of increasingly higher amounts.
The lottery scam occurred in July 2022. Police are investigating whether she wagered a total of R$ 461. According to betting history on the Sorte Online website , the doctor moved the astronomical sum of R$ 572.932,90 on digital platforms during the same period.
Investigation into graduation ceremony irregularities
The doctor is also being held responsible for the embezzlement of nearly R$1 million from the graduation party funds for the USP medical school class. The Public Prosecutor's Office has filed eight charges against her for fraud and one for attempted fraud in this investigation. The investigation against the student began after a fellow student filed a police report.
The graduation committee noticed the embezzlement on January 6, 2026. One of the victims filed a police report on January 10. The suspect stated, through WhatsApp messages , that she transferred the money to a personal account. Alicia's bank secrecy was broken, making it possible to trace how part of the money was used.
According to the police, she bought an iPad Pro for R$ 6.000, rented an apartment for R$ 3.700 for five months (including condominium fees), and rented a car for R$ 2.000. "There are 110 students who worked hard to get into the USP medical school and now they are seeing that dream [of graduation] at risk," stated Delegate Zuleika Gonzalez Araújo in January 2023.
The Forensic Institute analyzed at least two cell phones, a smartwatch , bank cards, and an external hard drive. Police are investigating whether the money used in the unpaid bets may have originated from funds embezzled from the graduation party.
In her statement to the police, Alicia said that the money was not being well managed by the company hired to handle the graduation and that she decided to manage it herself, but ended up making terrible financial investments, losing money. She also said that she tried to recover the funds by placing bets at a lottery outlet.
Retrieved messages
Conversations between Alicia and acquaintances were recovered in which she discusses expenses and changes in her story. When the case came to light, she showed supposed remorse in the messages and said she was "living through her own hell." She even commented on attempts to recover the money through bets on the Lotofácil lottery.
Defense claims gambling addiction and questions expert analysis.
Attorney Sérgio Giolo, who represents the doctor, said he will appeal the decision. "At the moment, it is not appropriate to comment on the merits of the accusation, especially since there are pending appeals and ongoing proceedings before higher courts, which are discussing relevant procedural irregularities," he stated.
In her defense presented to the court, Alicia stated that the expert ignored all the medical documentation from the time of the events and that there was a denial of due process. She argued that there was no fraud, since the lottery agency was not deceived.
According to the defense, "there was a high-risk credit operation, consented to and encouraged by the commercial establishment in pursuit of profit." "By allowing the defendant [Alicia] to place large bets 'on credit' without the proper funding, the lottery outlet was not a victim of fraud, but rather of its own gross negligence and greed," the defense stated to the court.
Attorney Sérgio Giolo stated in the lawsuit that the defendant's conduct, when she was still a student, was a byproduct of a serious psychiatric pathology. “As evidenced by the betting records on the Sorte Online website , the defendant moved the astronomical sum of R$ 572.932,90 on digital platforms during the same period as the events. This data proves that there was no plan to specifically defraud the lottery outlet that was the victim, but rather a financial and mental collapse resulting from gambling addiction,” the defense told the court. “There were no planned criminal acts.”
The Public Prosecutor's Office stated in the lawsuit that Alicia was trying to "get away" with the consequences of her actions by claiming to have psychological problems, and found it strange that she, given this condition, was able to work as a doctor. Alicia, 28, has an active registration with Cremesp (Regional Council of Medicine of the State of São Paulo).
“On one hand, the defendant comes here claiming to have psychiatric problems to minimize the consequences of her actions,” prosecutor Vagner Queiroz stated to the court. “On the other hand, she goes to see sick people, prescribe medication, and act as if none of these psychological and psychiatric problems actually exist.”
g1 contacted Alicia Dudy Muller Veiga's defense team and is awaiting a response.
