Owner of lottery shop in Minas Gerais convicted of stealing emergency aid payments.

On August 2nd, a sentence was published condemning the former manager of the Espera Feliz Lottery House, Wanessa Laclau Bacellar de Souza Lopes, to a prison sentence of 2 years, 2 months, and 20 days, plus a fine of 14 days' wages. The prison sentence was replaced by two alternative penalties: community service or service to a public entity for 800 hours, and weekend confinement for 2 years, 02 months, and 20 days.
She was also ordered to compensate four victims with R$600,00 each. The sentence recognized the commission of 5 aggravated thefts committed through fraud, with the aggravating circumstance of having been committed during a public calamity.
The Public Prosecutor, Vinícius Bigonha, stated that he is already appealing the decision. According to him, the various actions taken by the defendant deserve a greater reprimand, and he has even requested a judgment ordering the payment of R$ 50.000,00 (fifty thousand reais) as compensation for collective moral damages.
Bigonha further explained that the reason for the dissatisfaction stems from the fact that the crimes of aggravated theft by fraud committed by the defendant, the managing partner of the Espera Feliz Lottery House, go beyond the limits of individualism, affecting, due to their seriousness and repercussions, the fundamental circle of social values.
According to him, not only did Espera Feliz suffer the worst flood in its history in January 2020, which left 1.500 (one thousand five hundred) people homeless, but the accused also stole money from 10 (ten) people who were beneficiaries of the emergency aid provided by the Federal Government to people in situations of social vulnerability, which clearly harms the moral sphere of the Espera Feliz community.
The defendant can also appeal the sentence.
REMEMBER THE CASE
In June 2020, the court received a complaint against Wanessa Laclau Bacellar de Souza Lopes. She is accused of stealing part of the emergency aid payments from 10 victims who went to collect the benefit at the lottery agency in Espera Feliz, which Wanessa was responsible for.
According to the complaint filed by the Public Prosecutor's Office, between April 17 and 29, 2020, ten people were defrauded. They were entitled to receive R$ 1.200,00 in emergency aid, but Wanessa allegedly only passed on R$ 600,00.
The case began to be investigated after several people receiving Bolsa Família benefits contacted the Municipal Department of Social Development complaining about the low amount of aid they had received. The Department conducted a survey and verified that these people were entitled to a higher amount than what was delivered at the lottery agency.
The Civil Police investigated and indicted Wanessa as being responsible for the thefts of the money, and requested her preventive detention from the court. The Public Prosecutor's Office, through prosecutor Dr. Vinícius Bigonha, filed the charges and reiterated the request for preventive detention.
The judge of the district of Espera Feliz, Dr. Mateus Leite Xavier, received the complaint but denied the arrest. He imposed other restrictive measures such as removing the suspect from the activities of the lottery shop, house arrest at night and on weekends, prohibiting her from communicating with any of the victims, and prohibiting her from leaving the city without court authorization.
The prosecution's indictment classified the action as the crime of aggravated theft, with abuse of trust, or through fraud, climbing, or dexterity.
During the investigations, Wanessa denied the crime and claimed technical problems with her equipment to justify the inconsistencies in the payments.Muriaé Guide – MG – Source: Espera Feliz Portal)