Thursday, State Auditor Shad White announced that Hope Bishop, former Human Resources Vice President at the Mississippi Lottery Corporation, has pleaded guilty to embezzlement.

Bishop was arrested in November 2023, and accused of giving herself unauthorized raises. The MLC staff discovered her embezzlement and reported it to the Auditor’s office when they were improving lottery operations. MLC has now put into place additional controls to prevent embezzlement in the future.
Bishop was served with a demand for $187,738.85 at the time of her arrest. She had no access to the gaming side of operations, so her actions did not affect the integrity of lottery games.

“I’m thankful for the efforts of the investigators, prosecutors, and the lottery corporation for the joint work required to bring this case to a close,” White said.

Bishop was prosecuted by the Rankin County District Attorney’s Office. She was sentenced to 20 years in custody of The Mississippi Department of Corrections, with 15 years suspended, and 5 years of house arrest followed by 5 years of supervised probation. Fines, fees, and investigative costs were also ordered. An insurance policy covered Bishop’s employment at MLC.

Report suspected fraud to the Auditor’s office by clicking the red button at www.osa.ms.gov any time, or by calling 800-321-1275 during normal business hours.