News writer
A Texas man has been arrested following a burglary investigation that led police to the stolen lottery tickets and cash. The Delta County gas station employee is facing serious charges as the investigation continues to unfold, authorities said.
The incident in question
Around 7:30 a.m. CT on Wednesday, November 6, 2024, a burglary call came into the Delta County Sheriff's Office. A deputy with the sheriff's office was dispatched to the Lakeview Exxon, located at 40 Highway 24 in Cooper.
According to the caller, they arrived for work that morning, and the front door was open, and money was missing from the safe. They also reported that lottery tickets had been stolen.
Detectives talked with Texas Lottery representatives, who gave them information regarding several batches of scratch-off lottery tickets that had been stolen and then cashed out at stores in nearby Greenville and Commerce.
The investigation
Detectives determined during the initial investigation that a key had been used to enter the store the night of the break-in. Then the alarm was manually turned off and the camera surveillance system had been disabled, according to authorities.
While they didn't have any surveillance footage from inside the store that night, investigators did focus their efforts on obtaining video surveillance from the stores where the stolen lottery tickets were turned in.
From that footage, officials determined the suspect was a Lakeview Exxon employee. That employee was identified as 42-year-old Cooper resident Craig Clark. At the time, Clark was living in a travel trailer directly behind the Exxon gas station.
An arrest was made
Around 6:30 a.m. CT on Friday, November 15, 2024, officers with the Delta County Sheriff's Office served a search warrant and an arrest warrant for Clark at his travel trailer in Cooper. Clark was taken into custody without incident.
Officers said they searched the travel trailer and found a large amount of money that is believed to be proceeds from the cashing of the stolen lottery tickets. Several other pieces of evidence linking Clark to the crime were also seized from the trailer, according to authorities.
Authorities never gave details on how much cash or the amount of lottery tickets Clark allegedly stole. However, Clark was booked into the Delta County Jail and charged with a felony of theft of property over $2,500 but less than $30,000 and a misdemeanor charge of theft of property over $750 but less than $2,500, police said. He is being held on a $55,000 bond pending his trial, which no date has been set.
Officials said Clark has also been charged with possession of dangerous drugs, a misdemeanor, and he will soon be arraigned on that charge.
In addition, Clark is facing other charges stemming from the illegal cashing of the lottery tickets. Authorities said warrants for those charges are expected to be filed soon.
Enjoy playing the Texas Lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.
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