Billionaire Adrian Portelli has hit back at South Australian authorities in an Instagram video after he was accused of running an unlawful lottery.
Portelli said his business had contributed millions to the state’s economy and argued that prosecuting him for a tiny fraction of his fortune was a waste of taxpayers’ money.
“We had a good relationship with South Australia and they allowed us to invest millions and millions and millions of dollars into their state,” he said.
Portelli is facing nine counts of conducting/assisting in the conduct of an unlawful lottery, and his company LMCT+ is facing 10 counts of the same charge.
“We have met with governing bodies, we have met the gaming commissions, they’ve come out to see us we’ve worked with them.”
“They all come back with the same finding, that we are compliant,” he said.
“The only people, cowboys, I like to refer to them as, is South Australia.”
Other states have investigated the subscription platform and cleared it, he said.
Portelli claims South Australian authorities revoked his licence “overnight”.
SA Consumer and Business Affairs said it had not taken the decision to prosecute lightly, and lottery laws were in place for a reason.
In the Instagram video, Portelli appeared to offer to pay up to “call it even”.
“It’s a maximum penalty of $190,000. I’ll round it up to $200,000” he said.
“Call it even, and stop wasting peoples’ money.”
It’s not clear if that means Portelli intends to admit to the charges when he faces court in Adelaide on January 15.
The promotions guru and property investor is a familiar face on Australian television, including recently purchasing all five homes in the auction finale of the latest season of The Block.
