Portelli, 35, hailing from Melbourne, is accused of nine instances of conducting or helping to conduct an illegal lottery in South Australia. His company, Xclusive Tech Pty Ltd, operating as LMCT+, is similarly charged with 10 counts of the same violation.

He appeared in Adelaide Magistrates Court today via audio link for a pre-trial conference.

Winning the prize “involved an element of chance” but the defendant “did not hold a licence to conduct the lottery in South Australia”.

Judge Hribal noted the need for a special listing and prioritization due to the complexity of the case and the fact that Portelli’s legal team is traveling from another state.

Prosecutors asked for “basic AVL facilities” to play videos at the trial, while defence counsel said it would call two witnesses to give evidence.

Portelli gained fame as “the Lambo Guy” in 2022, after arriving at a house auction for The Block in a yellow Lamborghini.

In the 2024 series of the reality show, he spent $15.03 million to acquire all five homes on offer.

The Block is a Channel 9 show. Channel 9 is owned by Nine, the publisher of this website.