Alleged Lotto Scammers Arraigned; Held On Bail

A trio of Riverhead residents charged with scamming a construction worker from the winnings of his $74,000 lottery ticket were arraigned on Tuesday in Central Islip.

A grand jury has indicted three men suspected of swindling a Take Five lottery winner. Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said Yalcin Nergiz, 41, Yunis Ozturk, 33, and Orhan Ozurk, 47, all of Riverhead, appeared for arraignment before Acting State Supreme Court Justice Fernando Camacho in the First District Courthouse in Central Islip on Tuesday. 

“Nergiz and Yunis Ozturk, working at the Valero Gas Station on Peconic Avenue in Riverside deceived the winner by paying him $774 of the $74,892 payoff when he redeemed the ticket on March 18,” Spota said. “An investigation by this office’s Economic Crimes Bureau, Southampton Town Police and the New York State Lotto Commission established that on March 19, Orhan Ozturk, acting in concert with his brother Yunis and accomplice Yalcin Nergiz, cashed the winning ticket at the Lottery’s Garden City customer service center and the three divvied up $48,318.27 - the proceeds after taxes.”  

On Tuesday, all three men were charged with two counts of grand larceny in the second degree; and two counts of criminal possession of stolen property in the second degree, a felony. 
  
The trio was also indicted on one count of conspiracy in the fourth degree, a felony.

Orhan Ozturk was also slapped with two counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, a felony. 

Orhan Ozturk and Yunis Ozturk pleaded not guilty to all charges; Yunis is being held in lieu of $50,000 cash bail; Orhan’s bail is $10,000. Yalcin Nergiz's arraignment was adjourned to May 21 so that his attorney can appear, according to Bob Clifford, spokesperson for Spota.

The three defendants had been incarcerated in the county jail without bail until the arraignment. 

Police said the man who attempted to cash the Take 5 ticket has told police he is a construction worker from Guatemala cannot speak or write English.