The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Beleaguered Connecticut lottery finds new leader
Plagued by scandals and currently under investigation by the state, the Connecticut Lottery Corporation has found a new president and chief executive officer after 16 months of searching.
Gregory Smith, former director of the Vermont and Illinois lottery corporations, will assume leadership of the lottery on July 20, said Donald DeFronzo, chairman of the board of the quasi-public agency, in a statement Thursday.
Smith replaces Anne Noble, the lottery’s last permanent CEO, who left the lottery in August 2016, after nearly 10 years. Before Noble’s departure and following it, the lottery has had a slew of issues that DeFronzo said have given the lottery a “damaged image.”
In November 2015, the Lottery discovered retailers manipulated machines to print only winning tickets in the Five Card Cash game. An investigation by the state’s Department of Consumer Protection, which oversees the lottery, unfolded as Noble negotiated a lucrative separation agreement with the lottery.
Frank Farriker, the thenchairman of the Lottery Board, stepped in to serve as interim CEO after Noble’s departure, but resigned in May 2017, after several legislative committee hearings into the Five Card Cash scandal produced heavy criticism of his leadership and Noble’s separation.
Chelsea Turner, the lottery’s then-chief of strategy and government and operational affairs, became interim CEO after Farriker and will hold that role until Smith starts later this month.
Under her watch, a lottery mobile app incorrectly informed winners they lost. And on Jan. 1, the lottery botched a drawing, wrongly excluding 100,000 ticket buyers and costing the state nearly $1 million.
In March, DCP announced a new “wideranging” investigation into the lottery’s operations and treatment of employees. That investigation is ongoing.
The selection of Smith as CEO shows the lottery’s “commitment to integrity in operations at all levels,” a desire to “change the face of the lottery and to move forward with innovative measures” for new growth, DeFronzo said.
Smith now serves on the national board of the Mega Millions Group and heads the Illinois Lottery. He lead the Vermont Lottery Corporation from 2012 to 2016, after spending the previous five years directing the operations and finances of the Vermont Country Store.
The lottery began its search for a new permanent head in March 2017 and interviewed over 80 candidates, DeFronzo said.