California Lottery: Calif. Lottery pays out $264,000 after game show mistake
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The California Lottery will pay $264,000 in additional winnings to nine people whose names were mistakenly transposed on forms during a lottery game show.
Lottery officials say a mistake during a taping in February of the "Make Me A Millionaire" television show resulted in the nine players playing a different game than they otherwise would have.
The nine players received another chance at winning Sunday because the Feb. 8 error had resulted in them playing a lower-paying game than they otherwise would have on the lottery's weekly TV show. The results were announced Monday.
Patricia Gonzalez of Pomona won $84,000 Sunday after garnering $2,000 in February, so she will walk away with a net of $82,000.
Kai Lei Wu of Cerritos garnered $60,000 Sunday, which will be reduced by $2,000 in February prize money.
Hazel Culpepper of Inglewood, who won $30,000 in February, netted $5,000 from $35,000 in winnings Sunday; Kimberly Bracamonte, Clovis, netted $18,000 from $20,000 in new winnings; Anita Johnson, Rancho Cucamonga, netted $13,000 from $15,000 in new winnings; and Barbara Goodwin, San Jose, netted $4,000 from $6,000 in new winnings.
Three players who won $2,000 in February left Sunday's replay with the choice of $30,000 in new winnings or a new car. They are Terry O. Gage of Lincoln, Rosie Mark of Inglewood, and Juan B. Lopez of Walnut.
While the lottery remedied the mistake for the nine players who did not receive as much as they should have in February, the lottery did not fix their mistake in giving too much prize money to another nine players.
In the February mix-up, nine others played for more money than they should have. They were allowed to keep their winnings — including Josefina Sineriz, of Bakersfield, who won $2.8 million when she otherwise would have played for the show's $2,000 consolation prize.
None of the players knew in February that an error had occurred. It became public after a confidential source approached a legislative oversight committee led by Assemblyman Hector De La Torre, D-South Gate, who questioned lottery officials about it in a September hearing.