A Tyler, Texas man has been sentenced to 16 years in prison after pleading guilty to attempting to claim stolen lottery winnings.
Gabrielle Gomez Hernandez, 57, entered a guilty plea Tuesday before Judge Kerry Russell in the 7th District Court, according to court records.
Hernandez was one of two men charged in connection with a scheme involving stolen Texas Lottery tickets. Authorities said the case began on July 25, 2025, when Ke’eric Armon Franklin, 27, also of Tyler, attempted to cash lottery tickets worth more than $1,500 at the Texas Lottery Claim Center.
Investigators later determined that the tickets had been stolen from a convenience store the night before, according to an affidavit.
Hernandez was initially arrested on a marijuana possession charge, but a Smith County grand jury later indicted him on Oct. 9, 2025, for claiming a fraudulent lottery prize valued between $200 and $10,000.
Franklin was arrested at the claim center after attempting to cash $1,502 worth of stolen tickets. When a responding officer tried to stop him from leaving, authorities said Franklin ran from the scene on foot.
Police eventually caught him near the intersection of Tanglewood Drive and Old Omen Road.
Franklin was charged with claiming a lottery prize through fraud, evading arrest, resisting arrest, and failure to identify with fugitive intent by providing false information.
He later pleaded guilty on Dec. 3, 2025, and was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in the lottery scheme.
