Loterías y Apuestas de Estado (LAE) would like to inform the general public that a number of groups of criminals of various nationalities are using the prestige and the commercial names of the Spanish Lottery by fraudulent means in several countries. They move easily around the whole world and use mobile telephones, PO boxes, provisional or false addresses (including real addresses of official Spanish organisations), as well as names that bring to mind prestigious institutions ("el Gordo", la Primitiva", "European Lottery Commission", etc.) They also forge the printed sheets and signatures of various banks or insurance firms.

In order to carry out the fraud, the procedure that is generally followed consists of informing the potential victim that they have been the lucky winner of a substantial prize (even if they have not participated in any draw), although they cannot collect this prize until they have paid an amount going towards the taxes, bank costs, delivery costs or insurance processing, etc. Usually, the fraudster warns their potential victim that the deadline to pay these charges is very soon and that their right to collect the prize is about to expire.

Loterías y Apuestas del Estado, that is, the Spanish Lottery, wants to inform very clearly the following:

1. To win a prize of the Spanish lottery is essential to have purchased previously lottery or bets of our range of products.

2. Spanish lottery prizes are always free of taxes and burdens.

3. When you are offered “prizes” that seem to be linked to the Spanish Lottery, DO NOT PAY ANY AMOUNT. We are, in all probability, before a criminal fact that must be reported to the authorities. The Spanish Police has already arrested and subjected to legal procedures some of the members of groups who were operating from Spain.

4. If you have any question, please contact:

[email protected]