Allendale County woman charged in alleged lottery ticket theft, fraud

An Allendale County woman now faces two state cases after investigators alleged she stole South Carolina Education Lottery scratch-off tickets, redeemed some and later tried to cash counterfeit tickets.

Mary Elizabeth Devoe, 61, was charged April 8 with breach of trust and intent to defraud involving counterfeit game tickets, then charged again April 30 with intent to defraud involving counterfeit game tickets, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. The agency said its investigation began after a request from the South Carolina Education Lottery.

The warrant for the breach-of-trust charge says the property involved was valued at more than $2,000 but less than $10,000. Local reporting said the alleged conduct took place between Dec. 18 and Dec. 30, 2025, and tied the case to Low Country Gas and Grill LLC at 1110 Buford’s Bridge Highway in Ulmer, where Devoe allegedly worked. That reporting also said she was accused of taking scratch-off tickets from the workplace, redeeming some of them, and then trying to cash counterfeit tickets.

A Richland County warrant allegedly says Devoe went to the lottery claims center at 1309 Assembly St. in Columbia on or about Dec. 29, 2025, and tried to redeem counterfeit tickets for a payout of $940. She was booked first into the Allendale County Detention Center and later into the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center in Richland County. She received a $2,000 personal recognizance bond in Allendale County and a $5,000 personal recognizance bond in Richland County.

The case is set to be prosecuted by the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office and the 5th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. The charges are allegations, and Devoe is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Under South Carolina law, falsely making, altering, forging, passing or counterfeiting a state lottery ticket with intent to defraud is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000.

The case also highlights why lottery tickets are treated as bearer instruments. The South Carolina Education Lottery advises players to sign tickets in ink right away and inspect scratch-off tickets for tampering at the point of purchase. The agency says most of the ticket-theft cases it investigates involve tickets stolen from retailers, not retailers stealing from players.

For Allendale County, where the population was 8,039 in the 2020 Census and an estimated 7,355 in July 2025, the case touches more than one institution at once: a local workplace, a state revenue system and the county and circuit courts that will now handle the allegations.