N.C. man charged with stealing $1M lottery ticket

Jul 12, 2012, 11:24 am (91 comments)

North Carolina Lottery

By Todd Northrop

RALEIGH, N.C. — Less than two weeks after a North Carolina community college student smiled for the cameras and cashed in on a winning $1 million lotto ticket, police say it wasn't hers to claim.

"It's honestly just luck," Mikala Fields said as she accepted her prize July 2. "You actually can win."

But luck had nothing to do with it, according to a North Carolina Education Lottery investigation. The Lottery accused Fields of conspiring with her husband, Sean Mewherter, who works at the local Kangaroo Express and is accused of stealing the winning ticket.

Oak Island police have arrested Mewherter and charged him with larceny and possession of stolen goods over $100,000. The charges were announced by the N.C. Education Lottery.

Lottery officials said that after the award was announced, they were contacted by Mewherter's employer, Kangaroo Express in Oak Island, where he allegedly obtained the ticket. An investigation led to the charges and his arrest by police there.

"A lot of safeguards are in place to ensure lottery prizes are honestly won," Alice Garland, executive director of the NCEL, said in a statement Wednesday. "In this case, lottery players didn't get the chance they should have had to win that prize. So when the money is recovered it will be used as prize money in a future instant game."

No charges have been filed against Fields. When she accepted the prize, she opted for the after-tax lump sum, which rounded out to about $408,000. She told the lotto she planned to use the cash to buy a new home, a car and fund her nursing degree. Officials haven't said whether the couple managed to spend any of the cash before police intervened.

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

Lottery Post staff, sourced partially from AP

Comments

mcginnin56

Wonder how they conspired to find that winning ticket to begin with? What busy little bees they were.

 

No more honey for them. No No

ochoop17

Who did the winning ticket belong too ?What?

rock_nc's avatarrock_nc

I was wandering how he knew it was a winning ticket..

time*treat's avatartime*treat

Did someone try micro-scratching?  No No

LottoGuyBC's avatarLottoGuyBC

mcginnin56

Quote: Originally posted by LottoGuyBC on Jul 12, 2012

Smash    LOL

mcginnin56

Quote: Originally posted by rock_nc on Jul 12, 2012

I was wandering how he knew it was a winning ticket..

Let the conspiracy theories begin.

 

mrylndw's avatarmrylndw

....oh, the deviousness of some people!Let It All Out

rgse90

How were they caught? I am confused how they knew it was a false win????

RedStang's avatarRedStang

Smart store owner. The commission isn't worth ruining your business reputation.

maringoman's avatarmaringoman

Quote: Originally posted by rock_nc on Jul 12, 2012

I was wandering how he knew it was a winning ticket..

I suspect that NC-EL is not about to reveal it right now. In the courts though the lottery commission will have to present its evidence to the judge and jury.

If it is a case of stealing a winning ticket from a customer then the lottery commission can rest easy. If its the infamous "micro scratching" then its a nightmare for the lottery commission because of all the publicity.  Firstly, many dishonest and or underpaid store clerks nationwide will be tempted to do it seeing that these two almost got away with it. 

Its going to be interesting to see how it unfolds.

pick4master

Quote: Originally posted by mcginnin56 on Jul 12, 2012

Let the conspiracy theories begin.

 

that person probably knew somebody at the ncel and they knew where the ticket was going and the ticket number. does that seem farfetched in today's society?

mcginnin56

Quote: Originally posted by time*treat on Jul 12, 2012

Did someone try micro-scratching?  No No

If that was the case (If the N.C. lotto decides to reveal this publicly), hope that doesn't start a widespread trend among crooked clerks to go having

a field day at our expense.   Bat

 

If this is becoming an epidemic, might be time for the scratchers to be re-designed to make then tamper proof.  Idea

mcginnin56

Quote: Originally posted by pick4master on Jul 12, 2012

that person probably knew somebody at the ncel and they knew where the ticket was going and the ticket number. does that seem farfetched in today's society?

Not at all. An inside job actually seems very plausible pick4master. That being the case, it seems only logical that the NCEL "mole" Beaver , was also

promised a piece of the action.

 

The plot thickens!  Leaving

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