N.J. lottery retailer loses license after 'discounting' ticket

Jun 7, 2011, 8:29 am (9 comments)

New Jersey Lottery

MORRISTOWN, N.J. — The New Jersey Lottery Commission has levied a $10,000 fine and permanently revoked the license held by Super Gold Deli on Morris Street in Morristown, New Jersey, to sell scratch-offs and online tickets.

Both Super Gold, a cigar and convenience store, and the affiliated Gold's Co. cannot sell lottery tickets because an employee admittedly "discounted" a winning ticket for a customer, Lottery Executive Director Carole Hedinger said Monday.

Discounting refers to a retailer offering a patron less than the full price for a winning ticket. The retailer then submits a claim form to the state to redeem the value of the ticket, as though he or she is the actual winner.

Against Lottery rules, the tactic might be done because the ticket buyer may owe back taxes, child support, tuition or have other monetary liens, all items the state checks before paying a prize claim over $600, Hedinger said.

The licenses to sell lottery were revoked in the past month. It was Super Gold's second offense since 2005, when it first paid a $10,000 fine and got a warning, Hedinger said.

A woman who answered the phone at the deli at first said she was the owner. When asked about the lottery revocation, she said she was an employee, that the manager was not available, and then hung up.

Hedinger said lottery security investigators learned about the discounting offense and corroborated that it occurred. She said Super Gold representatives acknowledged the violation.

There are about 6,200 retailers licenses to sell lottery in New Jersey and the discounting offense is not considered common, Hedinger said.

News story photo(Click to display full-size in gallery)

Daily Record, Morristown Patch

Comments

dpoly1's avatardpoly1

Another crook gets caught !!!!!!!!!!

No No

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

Betcha they were doing it a lot more often than the two times they got caught if they were willing to risk paying another $10,000 fine.

Or they're just eaten up with the dumb.

Grammy3

It is done in Pa also but nothing done to the store owner. And it is not an american either that owns the store....

sully16's avatarsully16

Quote: Originally posted by rdgrnr on Jun 7, 2011

Betcha they were doing it a lot more often than the two times they got caught if they were willing to risk paying another $10,000 fine.

Or they're just eaten up with the dumb.

Yep, gotta agree to that.

RJOh's avatarRJOh

Quote: Originally posted by rdgrnr on Jun 7, 2011

Betcha they were doing it a lot more often than the two times they got caught if they were willing to risk paying another $10,000 fine.

Or they're just eaten up with the dumb.

Betcha if they were real crooks they weren't cashing them in themselves but reselling them for their full value to other crooks to cash in for clean money.  There was an earlier news story about N.J. drug dealers buying winning lottery tickets and cashing them in to laundry their money.

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Jun 7, 2011

Betcha if they were real crooks they weren't cashing them in themselves but reselling them for their full value to other crooks to cash in for clean money.  There was an earlier news story about N.J. drug dealers buying winning lottery tickets and cashing them in to laundry their money.

I bet you hit the nail right on the head there, RJOh.

Tenaj's avatarTenaj

What?I wonder why "Illegal status" was not mentioned as one of the reasons for discounting.  Or did I miss that. I hear about that happening a lot.

RJOh's avatarRJOh

Quote: Originally posted by Tenaj on Jun 9, 2011

What?I wonder why "Illegal status" was not mentioned as one of the reasons for discounting.  Or did I miss that. I hear about that happening a lot.

The State was probably more concerned about who was cashing those tickets and Super Gold Deli role in getting them if a $10,000 fine didn't stop them.  Probably most of the players selling their tickets had "legal status" but didn't want the trouble of including a W-2G in their tax returns.

dallascowboyfan's avatardallascowboyfan

Quote: Originally posted by dpoly1 on Jun 7, 2011

Another crook gets caught !!!!!!!!!!

No No

I Agree!

End of comments
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