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Texas Gov. tells Lottery to stop exploring gambling expansionNews Story
But he doesn't have the legal authority to force the Lottery to stop Gov. Greg Abbott has told Texas lottery officials to stop efforts to explore the expansion of sports betting lottery games and other types of gambling that are prohibited under state law. The Dallas Morning News reports Abbott told Texas Lottery Commission Chairman J. Winston Krause in a letter Monday that he does not want the agency to continue its exploration of the games that other states have launched. Abbott wrote th
Nov 12, 2015, 11:56 am - Lottery News

Texas authorities had previously investigated brother of lottery cheatNews Story
By Todd Northrop The outrageous Hot Lotto rigging scandal that started in Iowa is now spreading into other states including Texas. Officials are taking a second look at a $570,000 winning multi-state lottery ticket purchased a decade ago in Colorado by a Central Texas judge. The investigation does not involve the Texas state lottery. Tommy Tipton, the subject of the investigation, is a Fayette County Justice of the Peace for Precinct 3, based in Flatonia. According to records from the T
Oct 14, 2015, 10:01 am - Lottery News

Texas Lottery starts new 'Texas Triple Chance' game next weekNews Story
Includes video report By Todd Northrop Texas Lottery players will be getting a brand new game to play, starting next week. On Sunday, Sept. 27, tickets for the new Texas Triple Chance game will go on sale at lottery retailers throughout the state. It is the Texas Lottery's first all-new draw game since All or Nothing was launched on Sept. 9, 2012. The new game is played like a traditional lotto-style game, in which players choose seven numbers between 1 and 55. But unlike the other T
Sep 21, 2015, 4:58 pm - Lottery News

Lottery scam with a twist hitting Central TexasNews Story
How would you react if you heard, Congratulations, your prize has been reserved! over the phone? The message is part of a sophisticated phone scam plaguing Central Texas, and is responsible for stealing millions of dollars from Americans each year. Joann Keilberg and her husband Jim almost fell for it. The Smithville, Texas, couple received a call in July from someone claiming to work for Publishers Clearing House. I was happy, Keilburg said. The caller said the won couple won $3.5
Sep 5, 2015, 8:10 am - Lottery News

Suspected lottery ticket thief causes major wreck in getawayNews Story
A suspect is in a Houston-area hospital after fleeing the scene of a daring robbery in Conroe and causing a serious traffic accident as he was attempting to make his getaway. Cody Byrd, 23, of Navasota, Texas, is suspected of stealing a large bin of Texas Lottery tickets from a Chevron convenience store in the Conroe area on Saturday afternoon. Byrd fled the scene in his vehicle at a high rate of speed only to collide with a family of four on SH-105 westbound. He attempted to flee on foot,
Aug 4, 2015, 8:24 am - Lottery News

Texas Lottery launches Set For Life scratch-off gamesNews Story
Available at four price points By Todd Northrop The Texas Lottery today announced a new series of scratch-off games called Set For Life, offering players the chance to win as much as $5,000 per week for the next 20 years. The new instant game is actually a series of four related games, each with its own price point and prize structure. The higher-priced games offer the best odds of winning a prize. Each of the games offers a top prize that pays off a weekly cash amount for 20 years.
Aug 3, 2015, 2:02 pm - Lottery News

Extradition trial begins this week in $16.5M Hot Lotto fraud caseNews Story
Legal wheels turning after rigged Hot Lotto drawing uncovered After months of investigation and legal wrangling, legal actions against two men accused of rigging a multi-state Hot Lotto computerized drawing are proceeding. When Sugar Land, Texas, resident Robert C. Rhodes endorsed Eddie Tipton on the professional networking website LinkedIn, he deemed his friend and former business partner as someone very focused on the bottom line and someone he would work with again in a second. The
Jun 7, 2015, 9:00 am - Lottery News

Texas lottery player turns losing scratch ticket into dream homeNews Story
Includes video report By Todd Northrop Carlos Zavala of Tyler, Texas, is the winner of $500,000 to build a dream home at any D.R. Horton Community in Texas, thanks to his selection of a key in a special event Friday. Players of the Texas Dream Home scratch-off game had the opportunity to enter their non-winning tickets into promotional second-chance drawings for a chance to become a finalist for the grand prize. Four finalists were chosen to participate in Friday's dream home giveaway e
May 18, 2015, 9:06 am - Lottery News

Texas legislature to consider lottery winner anonymity billNews Story
What a turnaround. In the 2013 session the Texas House passed a bill aimed at abolishing the state lottery. But after some soul-searching mainly confronted with the fact the state would lose $1.1 billion a year for public education some representatives who wanted to eliminate the Texas Lottery Commission reversed their vote, in essence resuscitating the game. Now House members may go a step further. On Tuesday the 150-member chamber will consider a bill that would allow winners of mo
May 9, 2015, 7:39 am - Lottery News

Texas man charged in Iowa lottery case contests extraditionNews Story
A Texas businessman accused of helping a lottery security official to try to claim a rigged $14 million jackpot is out of jail while he fights extradition to Iowa. Robert Rhodes, 46, of Sugar Land, Texas, left a county jail after posting bond April 9, three weeks after his arrest on two counts of fraud, court records show. He's expected to contest his extradition to Iowa during a May 7 hearing and is under electronic monitoring in the meantime. Rhodes is denying charges that he worked with
Apr 20, 2015, 7:33 am - Lottery News