The dichotomy of public perception can often be as stark as night and day, and for Australian billionaire Adrian 'Lambo Guy' Portelli, this has never been truer.

Just as he was being lauded for his philanthropic efforts, providing much-needed cost-of-living relief to the community, the South Australian authorities have filed charges against him and his business, Xclusive Tech Pty Ltd, which operates as LMCT+.

Portelli, known as 'Lambo Guy' due to his penchant for Lamborghinis, has been charged with nine counts of conducting or assisting in the conduct of an unlawful lottery.

His business faces a similar predicament, with 10 counts of the same offence.

These charges stem from allegations by South Australia’s Consumer and Business Services that LMCT+ engaged in unlawful lottery activities between 29 January 2023 and 16 May 2024. The case is scheduled to be mentioned in Adelaide Magistrate’s Court on January 15.

Adrian Portelli has been charged by authorities for allegedly conducting unlawful lottery. Credit: @adrian_portelli / Instagram

Despite the legal cloud hanging over his head, Portelli's recent acts of generosity have not gone unnoticed.

The 35-year-old billionaire recently made headlines for giving away a reported $150,000 in grocery vouchers at two Coles locations in Western Sydney.

This act of kindness was part of his initiative to help those struggling with the rising cost of living, a gesture that saw thousands of grateful individuals lining up in the sweltering heat for a chance at free groceries.

Within hours of the news breaking, he took to the LMCT+ social media account, saying, ‘It’s okay, SA, we still love you.’

‘Your gambling commissioner won’t allow you to win major life-changing prizes, so I’ve decided to run exclusive, DAILY $1,000 cash giveaways to you guys instead.’

‘We still love you, and I’ll definitely be visiting to do more grocery voucher handouts.’

LMCT+ markets itself as a 'shopping tool and rewards club', offering three membership tiers at $19.99, $49.99, or $99.99 per month.

Members enjoy the benefits of a rewards program and are entered into regular giveaways with prizes ranging from new cars to major cash prizes of up to $1,000,000.

Each membership tier comes with a different monthly amount of accumulating entries into these giveaways.

Portelli revealed plans to build a hospital in Penrith for high-needs patients.

This is not the first time he has engaged in such philanthropy; he previously distributed tens of thousands of dollars worth of gift vouchers to Coles shoppers in South Australia, causing long queues and a buzz of excitement at the Munno Para and Port Adelaide stores.

Key Takeaways

• Australian billionaire Adrian Portelli, also known as 'Lambo Guy,' faces charges over conducting an unlawful lottery with his business Xclusive Tech Pty Ltd, trading as LMCT+.
• The charges come a day after Portelli was celebrated for donating $150,000 in grocery vouchers at Coles supermarkets in Western Sydney to help with living costs.
• Portelli's business, LMCT+, which operates as a shopping tool and rewards club, offers various membership tiers with associated benefits and entry into regular giveaways, some with major cash prizes.
• Consumer and Business Services alleged the unlawful lottery took place between January 29, 2023, and May 16, 2024, with the case set to be mentioned in Adelaide Magistrate’s Court on January 15.

What are your thoughts on this complex situation? Have you ever benefited from such giveaways, or do you have concerns about the legality of such promotions? Share your experiences and opinions in the comments below.

 

[Johnnie boy]

No never been offered help paying for my groceries (sadly)

 

[deni67]

We live a stones throw from Munno Para shopping centre, if only we knew

 

[Bezz]

Years ago I worked for someone who owned a popular formal dress shop. She had a competion going and even advertised it in the local paper. If you purchased a dress including wedding dress and you won you got the dress for free.
8 weeks later she advertised the winner..it was her cousin who also worked for her.

Was she getting married, or was it just a fake prize

 

[Suzanne rose]

Was she getting married, or was it just a fake prize

Fake prize

 

[Suzanne rose]

How does this extend to community and sporting groups who regularly hold "raffles" to fund their cause?

Do they have to register their "lottery" with the appropriate authority?

I think sporting groups register to run Lotteries although raffles don't need permission

 

[MariaG]

I am sure he can afford to pay a legal team who will accept the hand slap, pay the fines, then, make sure he won't be caught out again.
I do see the good he does and there would be many people out there who can thank him for putting Xmas dinner on the table.
I will wait for the outcome of the court case/s before I make a final judgment on anything this obviously smart young man does with his millions.

 

[Rosi Gordon]

Go the the news agency and buy scratches, power ball, lotto, play the pokies at the clubs and you are paying to hopefully win a prize with the money going to the government where we don't hear it being distributed directly to people who really need a helping hand. Adrian may be making money this way too but he spends an awful lot on where it's needed to help charities also. Maybe the SA government should look at their own internal practices and maybe try to do more about cyber scams before trying to drag someone else down who tries to do right.

 

[Rosi Gordon]

I think sporting groups register to run Lotteries although raffles don't need permission

All raffles need to be registered to be legal and money reported to the ATO even sporting groups

 

[BillyB]

Years ago I worked for someone who owned a popular formal dress shop. She had a competion going and even advertised it in the local paper. If you purchased a dress including wedding dress and you won you got the dress for free.
8 weeks later she advertised the winner..it was her cousin who also worked for her.

Who drew the tickets? My daughter won a raffle she was running for health dept. but she did not draw any of the tickets and also donated the prize back.

 

[Isis]

Here Australia goes again, tall poppy syndrome. Whatever his reasoning is and I consider it good reasoning, if he has skimmed the law it must be sorted out.
However this lovely man has worked out another way to share his money with people in need. God bless him for that.
Don’t doubt the people receiving free food don’t give a flying fruit bat where he got it.

 

[Penny4]

Does he post winners of the raffle tickets on social media or on the website? ie. a car etc that people win? As a business man, he would know about registering raffles/prizes. He probably wanted to see how long before he got caught, or might not even care. Who knows what's in his mind - good or bad.
I did check his website. There are winners with photos. I guess it's like any lottery, you have to be in it to win it and know the odds.

 

[Aunty Rolls]

Sorting truth from lies is becoming increasingly difficult in this world today
I have no idea what hoops someone had to jump through to set up a lottery
One would think that if no money was being asked for and a gift was being given that there would be no possibility of fraud
If giving away houses and being extremely fair one would need to give those applying a number in order to know who had won each house. I don’t know how this philanthropist ran the lottery so cannot comment fairly
The fact that he is giving away money no strings attached suggests that he is honestly trying to help those less fortunate

 

[Carol]

Maybe a few other rich Australians could take a feather out of his cap & spread the wealth around instead of bribing politicians.

 

[Veggiepatch]

I think sporting groups register to run Lotteries although raffles don't need permission

We had a raffle in the 1980s for our local touch football club to help pay for the shirts, shorts and socks. The first prize was a $500 hi-fi system.

The raffle was strangely won by the organiser of the raffle who then donated the sound system back for another raffle.

We didn't need a cent from our own money to pay for our strip!

 

[Penny4]

We had a raffle in the 1980s for our local touch football club to help pay for the shirts, shorts and socks. The first prize was a $500 hi-fi system.

The raffle was strangely won by the organiser of the raffle who then donated the sound system back for another raffle.

We didn't need a cent from our own money to pay for our strip!

I reckon in that case he should have drawn another winner. But hey, at least you didn't have to pay for your stuff.

 

[deni67]

Who drew the tickets? My daughter won a raffle she was running for health dept. but she did not draw any of the tickets and also donated the prize back.

Iv'e read over the years that people that run these raffles and lottos arn't allowed to buy tickets in it.
There is usually a stipulation in the rules saying such.

 

[deni67]

There are dozens, maybe hundreds of raffles run on Facebook at any given time, my bet is that they are illegal ones, not registered in other words.

 

[deni67]

Go the the news agency and buy scratches, power ball, lotto, play the pokies at the clubs and you are paying to hopefully win a prize with the money going to the government where we don't hear it being distributed directly to people who really need a helping hand. Adrian may be making money this way too but he spends an awful lot on where it's needed to help charities also. Maybe the SA government should look at their own internal practices and maybe try to do more about cyber scams before trying to drag someone else down who tries to do right.

I buy a Saturday night lotto every week and iv'e had some small wins, my biggest was a recent Super 66 buy. It was the first time i'd ever brought one and the last, I wasn't taking the chance of winning again.

 

[Littleboy8]

I buy a Saturday night lotto every week and iv'e had some small wins, my biggest was a recent Super 66 buy. It was the first time i'd ever brought one and the last, I wasn't taking the chance of winning again.

Last time my first ex and I won super 66 many moons ago we won $6,666.66 believe it or not.so we bought a kit car it was so low to the ground we nearly got backed over on and squashed by a bus. This was outside the art centre in Melbourne so we decided to sell it I hated that car it was like sitting in a coffin.Hence I very rarely got in it

 

[Maria Fuentes]

I think Mr Portelli needs to give away the money because the tax.
If he had to do that, can he buy me a house, because my rent is up, and be a pensioner is very hard to keep going with the pension and all the bills. Let him know this lines.
Maria.