Scratch-off theft: the loss your recorder already saw

By the Rikuy team · Updated October 2026 · /insights/scratch-off-theft.md

Scratch-off tickets are cash on a roll, and they leave the counter one at a time. In February 2026, a Miami store manager was detained after $60,546.95 in scratch-off tickets went missing; the owner found out from the bank, not from the camera above the counter. The fix is rarely more cameras. It is putting the lottery terminal report next to the counter camera.

Why it is hard to see

A missing ticket does not look like anything. There is no empty shelf and no broken lock. The register and the lottery terminal record sales minute by minute, and the camera records the counter, but nobody has time to compare the two.

Employee theft is not small change either. The Jack L. Hayes International survey of large retailers, with 2022 data, put the average dishonest employee case at $1,136.93.

The record you already have

Your lottery terminal report says how many tickets were sold, and when. Your register shows no-sales and voids. Both are written down. The only missing piece is someone who looks at the counter during those minutes.

Put the two side by side

Give your agent the terminal report and ask it to count what left the counter on camera. It searches the recording, compares the numbers and tells you which minutes do not add up.

Example conversation · fictional store

Did the night shift hand out more scratch-offs than the lottery terminal shows?

Yes. The terminal shows 38 tickets after 11 PM. Camera 1 shows 52 handed over the counter, the extra 14 between 2:10 and 3:40 AM. Want the clips?

Logged by Rikuy: CAM 01 Register, 11 PM to 7 AM, 96 frames

Before you act

An agent can be wrong. Rikuy sends every answer with a reminder to review the clip, and any decision about a person is yours, not the agent's.

Sources

  1. Meigs Independent Press, Miami convenience store manager detained in scratch-off theft (February 25, 2026). https://meigsindypress.com/2026/02/25/police-miami-convenience-store-manager-detained-in-massive-scratch-off-ticket-theft/
  2. SecurityInfoWatch, 35th Jack L. Hayes International retail theft survey (2022 data). https://www.securityinfowatch.com/retail/article/53060721/retail-theft-survey-reports-surge-in-apprehensions-dishonest-employees

Your agent counts. You decide.

Your agent searches the counter camera for the hours you choose.
It compares what it sees with the terminal report you give it.
Flagged looks reach you by email with the frames and the minutes.
Clips stay on your recorder; Rikuy stores no video in its cloud.

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