Search

Photos, evidence released in case of murdered Florida lottery winnerNews Story
Gruesome photos of the mummified body of a slain Florida lottery winner are among mountains of evidence released this week by the Hillsborough County State Attorney's office. More than 20 discs containing photos, videos and other documents were released in the case against Dorice DeeDee Moore, who is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Abraham Shakespeare of Lakeland. Moore was indicted by a grand jury in March after Shakespeare's body was discovered last January. The remains
Nov 25, 2010, 8:24 am - Lottery News

Florida woman accused of running personal lotteryNews Story
A mother who solicited her neighbors for cash with the promise of a $500 prize was arrested Saturday and charged with leading an illegal lottery, authorities said. Tina Marie Bell, 47, had her daughter fill mailboxes with letters asking residents to send $5 entrance fees for a chance at the winnings, according to a Pasco County Sheriff's Office report. All money was to be sent to Bell's home on Rainbow Lane. A neighbor asked the Sheriff's Office if the lottery was a scam, and a deputy resp
Nov 2, 2010, 8:31 am - Lottery News

Florida Lottery winner featured on TV showNews Story
Appeared on 'The Lottery Changed My Life' Thursday Richard Lustig faced a stack of medical bills after his son was born in 1992. At the same time, his house in South Florida had a leaky roof. Then he plunked down a buck for a Millionaire Magic scratch-off ticket. Seconds later, he was $10,000 richer. But he and his family didn't even go out for a celebratory dinner. By the time the bills were paid and the roof was repaired, there was nothing left over, he said. That was just the begi
Oct 22, 2010, 8:53 am - Lottery News

Gambling opponents see trouble with new Florida Lottery instant rewards gameNews Story
A new Florida Lottery game offers payouts of up to $3 million and instant rewards a combination that has gambling opponents worried. Lucky Lines, which debuts Monday, lets players know right away if they're won big money. That's different from the Lottery's other computer-based games, such as Cash 3, Lotto and Powerball, and likey will appeal to compulsive gamblers, experts say. For somebody who is compulsive about gambling, they need instant results, said Pat Fowler, executive director o
Oct 11, 2010, 8:58 am - Lottery News

Florida Lottery installing more instant ticket vending machinesNews Story
The Florida Lottery will begin installing an additional 500 instant ticket vending machines around the state next week because they've become so popular with players. The Lottery started installing 1,000 vending machines last fall and they exceeded expectations. They have generated about $200 million in their first year of operation. Lottery spokeswoman Connie Barnes says the agency hopes to have all 1,500 instant ticket vending machines, or ITVM's, up and running by Thanksgiving. We f
Oct 8, 2010, 8:47 am - Lottery News

Elderly woman loses $300K to Jamaican lottery scamNews Story
People ripped off by one scam could be targeted for dozens more. A database of easy targets is now being used by con-artists. Stuart Childers said a stack of documents he showed WFTV Wednesday is paper trial of the hundreds of wire transfers his 75-year-old mother sent to scam artists. She put it to us she wanted to leave a legacy, do something good for the family, Childer said. Childers said his mother fell victim to a Jamaican lottery scam and gave the thieves close to $300,000 in a
Oct 7, 2010, 11:00 am - Lottery News

Hoax: Man claimed he shredded winning ticketNews Story
The real winner says she has played the same number for years A Florida man's story to get his hands on $14.5 million in lottery winnings has been shredded. Chris Gooden, 31, had claimed that he put a winning lottery ticket in the shredder by mistake last month and that he literally only had shreds of evidence that he was the true winner of the Sept. 22 Florida Lottery drawing. The story seemed like a tragedy until the real winner, a 70-year-old retiree, came forward with the winning ti
Oct 5, 2010, 10:48 pm - Lottery News

Fla. Lottery awards $20M grand prize in scratch gameNews Story
The Florida Lottery last week held the grand prize drawing in the $600 Million High Roller Scratch-Off game, awarding one lucky winner the $20 million grand prize. Patricia Howell, 55, of Jacksonville, claimed her prize at Lottery headquarters on Sept. 16; she chose the one-time, lump-sum payment for her winnings in the amount of $15,051,167.49. Howell has been a fan of the Florida Lottery for years and she frequently purchases tickets. Her first big win was when she won $1,000 in the $600
Sep 23, 2010, 8:08 am - Lottery News

Undercover lottery investigation tests store clerks' honestyNews Story
If you end up with a winning lottery ticket, you'll end up with the cash... right? A television investigative program recently traveled to various states testing the honesty and integrity of lottery store clerks in correctly informing customers of their winning lottery tickets. What they discovered was a mixed bag: although some clerks correctly identified wins for their customers, many did not. In fact, several attempted to basically steal their customer's winnings by telling them their l
Sep 7, 2010, 9:32 am - Lottery News

Doctor who won lottery still wants 'to help people'News Story
When Jackson Memorial Hospital doctor Shirley Press heard the buzz nine years ago that someone at work had won the lottery, she told co-workers, That person is going to be such an oddball they aren't going to fit in anywhere. She quickly learned that she was the oddball. Over the following week, the 50-year-old mother of two teenagers and director of pediatric emergency care would try to keep a semblance of a normal life as word spread about her fortune a lump sum that after taxes amounted t
Aug 31, 2010, 6:00 pm - Lottery News