Adrian ‘Mr Lambo’ Portelli’s house giveaway has been marred by technological glitches, forcing him to delay announcing the winner.
The 35-year-old billionaire spent $15 million purchasing all five Phillip Island homes during the 2024 season of The Block and plans to give them all away in a record-breaking lottery.
However, the planned lottery through his company LMCT+ hit a major roadblock on Thursday due to technical issues, with Adrian deciding to ‘pause’ the promotion.
The winner was due to be announced on Boxing Day at 8.30pm, but the results were postponed for 24 hours due to problems.
A post shared on Instagram read: ‘PLEASE NOTE: Due to technical issues, winners will now be drawn tomorrow, 8:30pm AEDT. The promotion ended at the specified time.
‘No more entries will be generated for this promotional giveaway. Thank you for your support and understanding.’
Adrian ‘Mr Lambo’ Portelli’s house giveaway is marred by technological glitches, forcing him to delay announcing the winner
In a video, Adrian explained that the competition closed at 8pm as planned, but due to the huge amount of traffic on the website, the LMCT+ systems subsequently crashed.
Although the issue was resolved in time, Adrian said he still postponed the lottery so he can “go through everything personally” and ensure it is successful.
“This is what happens when you perform things live, unfortunately, that’s how you know it’s all legit, because these kinds of things happen,” he said.
“It’s annoying, I’m frustrated, but I’d rather be safe and preserve my company’s reputation and my reputation and not disappoint you or break trust in any way.
‘Once I’m sure everything is working properly, we’ll draw the winners. We will draw the winner tomorrow at 8:30 PM.
“The guys will work all night, test everything and make sure it’s OK, and then we’ll move on.”
The lucky winner will take home all five properties on Phillip Island, or receive $8 million in cash.
At LMCT+’s “rewards club,” customers pay for various membership levels to receive entries for luxury giveaways.
The winner was due to be revealed at 8.30pm on Boxing Day, but the results were postponed by 24 hours due to the problems. Adrian shared a video detailing the struggles.
During the 2024 finale of The Block, Adrian made history by purchasing all five properties for a whopping $15 million.
In his final year bidding on the show, Adrian made Maddy and Charlotte Harry the youngest ever winners when he bought their house for $3.5 million.
Adrian’s company, LMCT+, has regularly raffled off properties from The Block, including last year’s $5 million purchase of Steph and Gian’s winning home.
Shortly after buying up the entire parcel of homes on Phillip Island, Adrian then announced his massive ‘resort giveaway’ via LMCT+.
However, the lottery stumble comes weeks after Adrian was accused of running or assisting in an illegal lottery.
Adrian and LMCT+ are facing a total of 19 charges from the South Australian consumer watchdog.
The state’s Consumer and Business Services office launched an investigation into the Melbourne businessman’s activities in September last year.
The government department subsequently filed charges against Adrian and Xclusive Tech Pty Ltd, trading as LMCT+, on November 27.
The bidder, 35, spent $15 million buying all five Phillip Island homes in the 2024 season of The Block and is giving them all away in the record-breaking lottery (he’s pictured on the site)
The charges relate to alleged unlawful lotteries held in South Australia between January 29, 2023 and May 16, 2024.
Court documents reveal that prizes in LMCT+’s alleged lotteries included cars, three Victorian properties as seen on The Block – one of which was worth around $2.9 million – and cash prizes of up to $3 million.
Adrian faces nine charges for conducting/aiding the operation of an unlawful lottery, and the company faces 10 charges for the same charge.
If convicted of all charges, Adrian and his company could face a maximum fine of $190,000.
The case is scheduled to be first mentioned in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on January 15.