Liquor store worker suspected in lottery scheme

A Newport Beach man who worked at a Santa Ana liquor store was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of redeeming winning Scratchers lottery tickets and reselling losing ones to customers, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s office.

Francis Bou Karam, 34, was charged with one felony count of grand theft, one felony count of computer access fraud, and 23 felony counts of forgery, according to a statement from the office.

Karam worked at Craig Liquor in the 1200 block of West MacArthur Boulevard between Jan. 1, 2013, and Nov. 13, 2014.

During that time, the district attorney’s office said, Karam scratched off a portion of the ticket to see if it was a winner. He is accused of redeeming $50,000 worth of winnings from the state, according to the release.

If convicted, Karam could serve up to 18 years and four months in state prison.

— Jason Song is a staff writer with the Los Angeles Times