Letter alleges lewd, drunken behavior by California lottery officials

SACRAMENTO - Gov. Jerry Brown has asked the attorney general to look into a whistleblower complaint about alleged inappropriate and drunken behavior by staff of the California State Lottery, a spokeswoman said Thursday.

An anonymous employee last week sent Brown's office and The Sacramento Bee a letter and package of photos showing the behavior, the newspaper reported .

One photo shows a man, allegedly a top lottery official, with his head up a woman's shirt at a bar. The woman is unidentified.

"These types of unprofessional shenanigans have become a regular practice of this management team when they travel to meetings," the letter said.

Lottery spokesman Russ Lopez declined to comment.

Brown spokeswoman Ali Bay called the contents of the letter "troubling." It's the second such package sent to Brown's office since last year, according to the Bee.

The inappropriate behavior in the photos allegedly occurred in 2016 after a sales conference at a bar in piano bar in Southern California. The letter also alleged lottery officials used inappropriate language, disparaged employees and showed favoritism.

Bob Medof, a lottery sales representative and union shop steward said lottery employees are "afraid to come forward" and that there is low morale in the department.

"It's unfortunate. They're just afraid. People tell me something and they say, 'Don't, quote me on that,'" he said.