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Former tribal lobbyist named as new California Lottery directorNews Story
California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Alva Vernon Johnson to take over the the state's lottery Monday, after former director Hugo Lopez stepped down Friday amid investigations. Johnson, a former tribal lobbyist, takes over a department that has been been under scrutiny from the Department of Justice and the State Controller's Office since August, when anonymous employees sent a letter to former Gov. Jerry Brown alleging misconduct among senior executives at sales conferences. Johnson lobb
Jun 11, 2019, 8:40 am - Lottery News

California Lottery director resigns amid investigationsNews Story
California State Lottery Director Hugo Lopez is stepping down immediately, he announced in an email to lottery staff on Friday. Lopez has led the department since 2015. It's been under scrutiny from the Department of Justice and the State Controller's Office since August, when anonymous employees sent a letter to former Gov. Jerry Brown's office alleging misconduct among senior executives at sales conferences. Lopez in his message said he was proud of the department's performance, particul
Jun 10, 2019, 8:18 am - Lottery News

Florida Lottery winner of $1M among suspects rounded up in major drug bustNews Story
Just days before Mother's Day in 2018, a pregnant woman in Volusia County went to Tallahassee to smile for the Florida Lottery cameras. That woman, Karlee Harbst, had won $1 million in the $5,000,000 Gold Rush Doubler game. She was on what gamblers call a roll she had won $100 in the same scratch-off game just a week before. The wins capped a troubled past for the Florida woman who had already racked up a number of drug possession arrests, petit theft, contempt of court and driving with
May 20, 2019, 10:54 am - Lottery News

Lottery winner can seek bigger prize at trial, judge rulesNews Story
Lucky Larry may have a shot to win millions more this time from a jury. A judge has ordered a trial in a lawsuit filed by Iowa lottery winner Larry Dawson, who contends a $9 million jackpot that he won in 2011 should have been nearly three times as big. Dawson filed his lawsuit in 2016 after an investigation revealed that lottery contractor Eddie Tipton rigged the previous $16.5 million jackpot, bought the winning ticket himself and unsuccessfully worked with associates to claim it. Da
May 17, 2019, 12:01 pm - Lottery News

Lottery-scamming brothers avoid asset seizures by transferring property to their motherNews Story
By Jason Clayworth Two brothers who were behind the largest lottery scam in U.S. history and owe more than $2.3 million in unpaid restitution and court fees recently transferred several properties they owned to their mother. The transfers from Eddie and Tommy Tipton have raised further questions about why four states Oklahoma, Kansas, Wisconsin and Colorado have yet to seize their properties. It has been about two years since the brothers admitted their role in a scam that hijacked lott
Apr 29, 2019, 9:50 pm - Lottery News

Colorado man who unwittingly split a $4.8M jackpot with scammer is fighting the Colorado LotteryNews Story
In 2005, three people won a Colorado Lotto jackpot worth $4.8 million, and Boulder's Amir Massihzadeh held one set of winning numbers. He accepted his prize of $568,990 after splitting the pot and paying taxes and moved on with life. Ten years later, Colorado Bureau of Investigation agents visited Massihzadeh to interview him about his winning number because they were investigating a criminal scheme to rig lotteries. They suspected the other two ticket-holders who split the prize with Mass
Apr 15, 2019, 10:14 am - Lottery News

Audit of California Lottery finds over $305,000 in improper or dubious spendingNews Story
California Lottery officials tallied more than $305,000 in improper or questionable spending over the last four years that included travel, food, gifts to employees and entertainment expenses, a state audit concluded Tuesday. Among the improper expenses, the lottery agency spent $21,666 to give staff logo-branded swag such as T-shirts, backpacks, lip balm and iPad cases, labeling the purchases learning aids and training tools, according to the audit by state Controller Betty Yee. The finan
Apr 11, 2019, 9:32 am - Lottery News

California Lottery official dismissed amid investigationsNews Story
A senior California Lottery executive has been dismissed from his position six months after anonymous state employees sent a letter to the Governor's Office complaining about rowdy behavior among a group of the lottery's top brass. Deputy Director of Sales James David Cole's dismissal comes amid ongoing investigations into hiring practices and alleged misconduct by senior lottery executives during a 2016 sales conference. Cole was notified Feb. 1 that his employment would be officially ter
Mar 26, 2019, 9:23 am - Lottery News

Man buys second winning $1M lottery ticket at same store in less than 2 yearsNews Story
A North Carolina man has won a second $1 million lottery prize at the same store in less than two years, lottery officials said Friday. Terry Splawn won $1 million with a $150 Million Cash Explosion scratch-off ticket he bought Wednesday at Sam's Mini Stop on Old Charlotte Road in Concord, according to a North Carolina Education Lottery news release. The odds of winning $1 million in that game are 1 in 1.8 million, according to the lottery's website. Splawn won his first $1 million prize i
Mar 13, 2019, 8:05 am - Lottery News

Undercover Kentucky Lottery investigation snares three store employees trying to steal prizesNews Story
An undercover operation conducted by the Kentucky Lottery has nabbed three store clerks trying to steal winning tickets. A grand jury in Louisville has handed down indictments against three individuals charged with influencing the winning of a lottery prize through coercion, fraud, deception or tampering with lottery equipment or materials, and a separate charge of providing false information to a lottery investigator. The first charge is a class B felony carrying a possible sentence between
Feb 28, 2019, 3:31 pm - Lottery News