South Carolina Circle K worker accused of cashing lottery tickets he never paid for

A 19-year-old Spartanburg County man has been charged with lottery fraud, accused of redeeming South Carolina Education Lottery scratch-offs he never paid for at the convenience store where he worked.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) charged Joseph Antoniyo Waller on Thursday, October 8, with Intent to Defraud, Counterfeit Game Tickets, the agency said in a release Monday, October 12. The South Carolina Education Lottery requested the investigation. Waller was booked into the Spartanburg County Detention Center. He has not been convicted and is presumed innocent.

According to the arrest warrant, on September 29, 2026, Waller unlawfully obtained and passed a quantity of scratch-off tickets at the Circle K at 2195 E. Main St. in Duncan. The warrant says surveillance footage showed him scanning, scratching, and redeeming the tickets without paying while he was employed at the store, and that store management identified him. It does not say how many tickets were involved or what they paid.

A Spartanburg County magistrate signed the warrant on October 8, and the case will be prosecuted by the 7th Circuit Solicitor's Office, SLED said. FOX Carolina reported the same details from the warrant. Under section 59-150-260 of state law, passing a lottery ticket with intent to defraud is a felony punishable by a fine of up to $50,000, up to five years in prison, or both. Anyone convicted is also barred from collecting lottery prizes.

SLED has brought similar charges against other store workers this year, including a Summerville Circle K worker, announced October 1, and a Conway store employee accused of taking 2,229 tickets. Days before Waller's arrest, the agency charged a Cherokee County man accused of cashing scratch-offs stolen from an Ingles.

Sources

SLED: SLED charges Spartanburg County man with lottery fraud

FOX Carolina: Former convenience store employee charged with lottery fraud in Spartanburg County

South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59, Chapter 150 (section 59-150-260)