Melbourne billionaire Adrian Portelli to plead not guilty to nine charges over alleged unlawful lottery
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Portelli and his company will contest charges over giveaways of properties from The Block TV show as well as other prizes. Melbourne billionaire Adrian Portelli – known for his cash and property giveaways, including houses from reality show The Block – will plead not guilty to nine charges of assisting in the conduct of an unlawful lottery.
The Adelaide magistrates court heard on Wednesday morning that both Portelli and his company, Xclusive Tech Pty Ltd (which operates under the name LMCT+), would contest the charges. Portelli was not required to appear at the hearing. Ben Lodge, who is acting for both parties, said that they wanted the matter dealt with quickly.
Xclusive faces 10 charges for conducting or assisting in the conduct of an unlawful lottery. Portelli bought all the properties in the latest season of The Block to give away, but the winner chose to take $8m prize money instead of the properties. Portelli’s company offers members subscriptions to a “rewards club”, and subscribers then get entries to win cars and properties. The model is known as a trade promotion lottery.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email. SA’s Consumer and Business Services (CBS) investigated cases including some giveaways from The Block before bringing the 19 charges. According to court documents, the incidents occurred between 29 January 2023 and 16 May 2024.
