Hialeah

Hialeah man arrested, accused of stealing $53K in lottery ticket books from his job

Surveillance video captured Cosme Calderon leaving a storage room with a bag, before scanning lottery ticket books on 18 different dates.

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A Hialeah man has been arrested after he allegedly stole $53,700 worth of lottery ticket books from his own job.

Cosme Calderon, 44, was reportedly only meant to clean the business and work the register as needed.

"He was supposed to just be cleaning there, but when his coworkers were going to the restroom, he would go to the storage closet, grab the little booklets, go to the cash register, activate them and then later on go to different locations and get the prizes from them," said Hialeah Police spokesperson Scarlett Hernandez.

Cosme Calderon faces grand theft charges for allegedly stealing more than 30 lottery ticket books from his employer.

In April, the victim initially reported the theft, but later identified Calderon as the employee in May.

According to the arrest report, surveillance cameras captured Calderon entering a storage room of the business and leaving with a bag in hand.

He then went to the register as another employee used the restroom -- and began scanning lottery ticket books on 18 different dates ranging from January to March, the report continued.

Each of the booklets could have about 60 tickets, and the cost ranges from $1 to up to $30 per ticket.

Calderon now faces third-degree grand theft charges and his bond was set at $90,000, Miami-Dade jail records showed.

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