No Boledo.. No Fantasy-5.. No Pick 3 – Lotteries Committee rejects license renewal for Brad’s sister company that administers Fantasy-5 and Pick 3.
BELIZE CITY, Thurs. June 8, 2023
On July 16, 2015, players of the Fantasy-5 game looked on, some with disappointment, as a Placencia resident appeared on the evening news claiming the largest jackpot to date: $612,000. Thereafter, there have been jackpots of anywhere from $100,000+ to under $500,000. But, as of today, June 8, faithful buyers will no longer have an opportunity to spend their money in hopes of having picked the 5 winning numbers that could turn their lives around. That’s because the Lotteries Committee – chaired by Narda Garcia, Chief Executive Officer in the Office of the Prime Minister – took the decision not to renew the licence for Caribbean Gaming Company Limited (CGCL) which administered Fantasy-5 and Pick-3. The reason provided was “non-compliance with the licensing requirements and conditions.”
A Ministry of Investment release dated June 6, 2023 informs that CGCL’s license was for the period June 1, 2018 to May 31, 2023. Effective today, June 8, CGCL was to cease and desist from all lottery operations. The Ministry and the Lotteries Committee also notified all establishments that selling illegal lottery tickets is prohibited and is an offense which carries a fine. The regulators likewise issued a warning to other license holders that in order to renew their license, they must comply with all licensing requirements and conditions.
While the directors of CGCL are not publicly known, in a statement on Wednesday, the Company told Amandala that all requirements were met except for one: Condition 8, where they asked for an audit to be done by a ‘certified lottery expert’”. They then added that it seems the Lotteries Committee has an agenda to move forward “revoking the license for anything that has to do with Kim Chee.” Nonetheless, the company said they would abide by the cease and desist order, and expressed the hope that the same scrutiny is being applied to the other games in the country.
Based on the fact that Fantasy-5 winners have claimed their prizes from the same No. 2 Farmers Market locale of Brads Gaming Group Ltd. in Belize City, we know that the two companies operate from the same establishment. Back in November 2017, when Boledo machines malfunctioned due to a server hack and people could not buy their numbers for the Sunday Lottery Draw, a Brads official had said, “You know people are very passionate when it comes to Boledo and Sunday Lottery, and even with the other games: Pick 3 and Fantasy 5 that our sister companies draw.”
Effective May 2, 2023, the Lotteries Committee revoked the exclusive license for Brads Gaming Group Ltd. which managed Government Lotteries. The committee cited multiple “material and substantial breaches of the conditions” of its license and the Lotteries Act and its regulations. Over a month later, a new government lotteries regime has still not come on stream.
To our knowledge, there is no attorney on record for CGCL. Senior Counsel Dean Barrow, who represents Brads, told us he does not represent CGCL.
Amandala reached out to Lotteries Committee Chair Garcia for more details about the non-compliances CGCL is being accused of, but she told us that they have been advised not to comment further on the issue. She did confirm on Wednesday that they have not yet received any communication from a CGCL representative.