Some residents of São José da Bela Vista (SP) filed a police report against the person responsible for organizing the pool that won R$ 108.3 million at Mega da Virada, in December 2022.
According to the group, the man received the money from 44 bettors, but used the amount to place two bets, and only the one with nine participants was awarded. The bettor’s defense denies that there was bad faith.
It is worth remembering that the total award of R$ 541 million, the largest in history, went to Florestal (MG), Arroio do Sal (RS), Santos (SP) and São José da Bela Vista, in the region of Franca (SP). On Friday, the 6th, Caixa Econômica Federal announced that all nine shares of the São José da Bela Vista pool – R$ 12 million each – had been withdrawn.
Separate pools
Two days after the draw, a resident sought out the Civil Police and filed a police report. He reported that, on December 20, 2022, he was contacted on WhatsApp by the organizer to participate in the Mega da Virada pool and paid R$ 30 for the game, as well as the others.
According to the resident, the man did not tell that two pools would be made. After the draw on December 31, when contacting the organizer, the resident was informed of the bet on two different pools and that only the group of nine players had won.
Lawyer Mario Alexandre Silva Bassi, who represents ten gamblers, said that the organizer’s approach was informal. “He says let’s participate in the sweepstakes with us, you pay an amount and you will automatically be participating. That way, individually, he made the connection with these people and collected the amounts to make the pool.”
According to Bassi, the group relied on the organizer’s promise to register the numbers on behalf of everyone. “We’re finishing up putting together the documentation and tomorrow or the day after we make the protocol for the Justice to assess and possible block values in order to support our customers”, says Bassi.
Mega da Virada pool organizer version
Lawyer Tiago Granzote, who defends the gambler, said that the pool group has existed since 2015. “At the end of 2022 it was no different. Gathered, they made the bets and each one got their share, and this fact does not demonstrate any bad faith, quite the contrary”, he said in a note sent to Portal G1.
He also said that the members of the pool left the municipality for safety. “Thus, it is clarified that there was no intention to hide any bet and gain an advantage from it, in addition to there being no intention to evade on the part of any member of the pool in question”, he concluded.
