Man and woman arrested for fraudulent gambling ticket scheme in Huntingdon Valley

The Lower Moreland Police Department arrested Christopher Anselmi, 38, and Cayla Smith, 27, for attempting to cash fraudulent tickets at a gambling machine at the Sunoco gas station at 2883 Philmont Avenue in Huntingdon Valley.

Police said that a report was received on Tuesday, February 6 which stated that a white male and white female were attempting to cash fraudulent tickets for increased values.

The suspects were still on location when officers arrived. Police spoke with the complainant who reported that the same two individuals had committed the same act a few days prior.

The complainant said that Smith came to the store and went to the Skills Machine, appearing to place money into the machine, and then quickly left the store. Smith returned and cashed in her ticket from the machine.

This process was executed a few times before the complainant conducted a check of the balances for the machine and, according to the report, the money which was paid out did not balance properly.

An investigation revealed that the actors entered the store and placed a small amount of money into the machine. They then cashed out the money entered into the machine and a payout ticket for the small amount. Next, they exited the store and returned with a fraudulent ticket showing the same ticket number for an increased value, which they cashed out.

Anselmi was found to be in possession of drugs, police said. His charges include:

(2) COUNTS OF ACCESS DEVICE IS COUNTERFEIT ALTERED INCOMPLETE (2) COUNTS OF FORGERY (2) COUNTS OF THEFT BY DECEP-FALSE IMPRESSION (1) COUNT OF RECEIVING STOLEN PROPERTY (1) COUNT OF INTENTIONAL POSSESSION OF CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE BY

Smith’s charges include:

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Photos: LMPD