NY Lottery Suspends 2 Downstate Quick Draw Vendors

Feb 15, 2005, 9:21 am (6 comments)

New York Lottery

The New York Lottery has suspended the Quick Draw licenses of two more vendors.

This time the vendors affected are somewhere in the downstate region, a Lottery official told NewsWatch50.

Friday evening, the Lottery abruptly shut off the Quick Draw feed to The Speakeasy and Kegler's in Watertown.

The Lottery terms the action "suspensions" while they conduct an investigation sparked by the Watertown Daily Times detailed account of the multi million dollar gambling spree by Watertown's John Breen.

Breen is awaiting sentencing after allegedly blowing through $7 million of his stepdaughter Maggie Rizer's money, much of it spent on Quick Draw.

Rizer had given Breen authority to manage the money she was collecting as one of the world's highest paid supermodels.

The Lottery official indicated the two downstate vendors who have had their Quick Draw suspended have no connection to Breen. Rather, the Watertown case involving Breen sparked a closer look at other Quick Draw vendors.

The Lottery will not say exactly what they are investigating at any of the establishments.

The Watertown Times raised allegations by Breen that The Speakeasy owner Jeff Graham taped Quick Draw games and played them back in his bar during a period in which Quick Draw was suspended statewide.

Breen also alleged that Watertown area bars including The Speakeasy and Keglers allowed him to run tabs instead of paying on a game by game basis. And he said he sometimes sold large winning tickets to Graham at a discounted price to save himself the trip to Syracuse to cash in.

Graham has termed Breen's accusations as being from a convicted felon "who has only a casual relationship with the truth."

Newswatch50

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CASH Only

Isn't Watertown near the Canadian border (not downstate)?

Todd's avatarTodd

Read again: The Watertown store was on Friday, and now there are two more shut down in the downstate region.

CASH Only

True, but the two stores mentioned are in Watertown.

Todd's avatarTodd

Yes, and those are Friday, not the subject of today's story.

Darth Tigger's avatarDarth Tigger



I wonder why they seem to be "stuck" on the Watertown story, instead of providing us more detailed data.  I will tell you this though, I am frelling glad I moved out of that area when the 10th Mountain Division moved in.  That place has gone down hill rather qucikly.

LOTTOMIKE's avatarLOTTOMIKE

hopefully that person didn't have all of their money blown by the stepdad...

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