Life has taken a startling turn for Edward R. Cowal.
Florida lottery officials announced Monday that Cowal, who is a state registered sex offender, was the sole winner of the $14 million lottery drawing from Jan. 13.
Cowal, whose name is on an eight-page record from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, elected to take a lump sum settlement of nearly $8 million before taxes. He purchased the ticket at the Cumberland Farms Store in Jensen Beach.
Cowal couldn't be reached for comment, and telephone service to his residence — a one-bedroom home in Windmill Village, a mobile home community on Hutchinson Island — has been disconnected.
Attorney James "Mac" Stuckey, of Stuart, picked up Cowal's winning check. Cowal assigned the money to the Quantum Trust, which he established to handle the funds.
Stuckey said Cowal asked him to be his representative because he wants "absolute confidentiality" and does not want to be bothered by people. Stuckey said he could not comment on any FDLE records for Cowal.
FDLE records show Cowal is a registered sex offender and has a record of arrests for alleged offenses beginning in 1993, ranging from burglary, lewd and lascivious or indecent assault upon a child, trespass, aggravated assault, driving under the influence, probation violation and high-speed fleeing from law enforcement. He was sentenced to 23 months in prison between 1993 and 2000.
Records show Cowal lived in the Windmill Village Recreation Center, which is a Jensen Beach mailing address though it's just north of the Martin-St. Lucie County line.
The mobile home has been on the market for sale at $120,000 for at least the past 30 days. Brokers at the Keyes Co. office in Jensen Beach could not comment on Cowal but were excited about the announcement.
"When we heard where the winning ticket had been sold," said Angelo Campo a broker-associate, "we almost had a heart attack. We have been buying our tickets at that store for years."
Workers at the Cumberland Farms Store, which will receive $25,000 for selling the winning ticket, said they had not been told who had won the ticket Monday afternoon. When told Cowal's name, several said they couldn't recall him.
Cowal is the 869th winner of a major jackpot since 1988, according to Florida lottery officials.
I guess that you never know when your number is going to come up. I hope that my ship comes in on Saturday. I hope that he uses the money to turn his life around, Maybe pay some restituion to the victims.
I guess this is one reason the lottery doesn't want to honor anonymity. Okay, he's a free man and bought the winning ticket, so he deserves to collect his prize. Like many others, I bought tickets for that game. I agree, s5thomps, that it would be nice if he turns his life around and maybe he will. But if he is really a sexual deviant, money won't change that compulsion. It will only give him more power and opportunity to commit these acts. He'll probably be taking a lot of vacations in Thailand.
Strange world we live in. Florida has its priorities all mixed up. While this convicted sex offender was collecting his millions, a 21 yr old college student was brutally assaulted and raped on the way to her car. She called the Tampa police for help and was later arrested and thrown in jail instead of getting treatment and counseling and denied medication. Why? The system showed she had an outstanding warrant because she failed to pay restitution for a juvenile offense, although it might be a clerical error. In the meantime this 21 year old premed student sat in jail after being violated the same day a sex offender collected $8 million dollars. Maybe I'm the only one who finds this revolting.
It just doesn't seem fair Just Exploring!!!!, I agree with you 100%, But you noticed how he had his attorney establish a trust to claim the winnings. He his protecting himself so he won't be sued for some of his money by the victims. But if had any kind of decency to him he should at least compenstate the people that he violated. It would never make amends for the damage he has done but at least it would show that he cared, But with Mr. Cowal claiming the winnings the way he did and disconnecting his phone and putting his trailer up for sale, I am sure he could care less about reaching out to the victims. It will interesting to see how this all plays out over time. As quickly as he won the money, It could all be gone within a couple years. We know all the horror stories of lottery winners going broke within 5 years.
I'm with ya...
Maybe this isn't very PC....but we all take our chances on the lottery. He bought a ticket and his number came up. End of story. Not good, not bad, not karma, not lack of karma. It just is what is.
It never seem fair to some people when someone else wins a lottery jackpot whether they are good or bad people especially if they are not giving any of it away.
A very famous man once said, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."
Real justice would be if those he has harmed could still file a multi-million dollar civil lawsuit against him for damages (physical and emotional). Now that he has assets, it should be payback time for those he preyed on...
Amen, Sister!
I guess now...he can afford to buy a small island...hire a team of lawyers and get away with doing as he pleases to innocent children.
Sorry...but I believe the only penalty for sexually assualting a child should be the death penalty. Anything less is a crime towards humanity.
Hummm...wonder how many alligators he could feed...at least that would benefit the enviroment.
Oh...and for those bleeding hearts out there...anyone bother to ask the innocent child he sexually assualted if she (or he) have healed from such a viscious and heartless attack?
Better yet...where are those vulture lawyers? Perhaps they should open up a civil damages case against him on behalf of the child and take the money away from him just like he stole the innocence from that poor child.
Oh well...just my ramblings...sorry folks...take care and try to have a decent day.
Sir Metro
I'm with you on this Sir Metro.
First of all, RJOh, I never said life was fair or not fair. Fair is only a term that applies in baseball. I started my post by saying he won fair and square by playing the lottery and having the winning ticket. No argument about that, JAG331. The game is random and doesn't choose the winner by his or her past achievements or failures, thank goodness. We also do not know what this man's crimes really were. Some states label a person as sex offender if he's caught peeing in public, although he has a long rap sheet which includes lewd and lascivious behavior with a minor and assault on a minor. I know few people who have that on their records. Oops - Come to think of it, I don't know ANYONE who has that on their record.
Bev - c'mon!! I am definitely not without sin. But my sins didn't assault, rape or torture anyone, especially a child. But let's forget about the lottery for a second. Are you saying that we should "turn the other cheek" (as long as we're quoting the Bible here) when it comes to sex offenders? Most of the time, the little girls and boys who were molested and/or murdered are repeat offenders and have been doing it for many years. Most of the time it's discovered they have more than 100 victims before they are imprisoned. The young boy who was kidnapped a few weeks ago in Missouri was taken by a man who had previously taken another boy and kept him for 4 years. I can't even imagine what that young boy went through and yet people are actually questioning why he didn't try to run away. Duh? Blame the victim? He was 11 and kidnapped and probably sodomized and told he would be killed if he escaped. Who knows what this sick piece of garbage did to him?
The man who tortured and raped little Jessica Lunsford (John Couey) had been arrested in the past but "served his time" and did not register as a sex offender. He moved across the street from a family with a precious little 9 year old girl, kidnapped her when she was sleeping and put her in a closet for several days, sexually abusing her until he decided to get rid of her (as his confession says..which was thrown out of court!!) She was found in a shallow grave clinging to her Teddy Bear, which she had been sleeping with when he kidnapped her from her bed! He put her in a large plastic trash bag and buried her ALIVE with her Teddy Bear. YES - I WANT TO THROW AS MANY STONES AT THIS MAN AS I CAN FIND.
Justxploring, I understand your anger. However, there are no Big wrongs or Little wrongs. Wrong is wrong. I've never been in trouble with the law. But I am not perfect like some people. But my point is this I am in no position to condemn this man or anyone else. And getting upset isn't going to change a thing or deter anyone from "their" bad behavior. If someone threw a rock at you for every mean thing that you said, did, or thought in regards to someone else would you survive?
My other point is this: As long as this man is not out committing more crimes against nature and people why can't folks just leave him alone? Let the justice system do their jobs. But as I said before getting your self all upset over something such is this really isn't worth it. Is it?
But if throwing rocks is your thing. Please go right ahead. I just hope and pray that no one will ever have to throw one at you or anyone else for that matter.
One more thing...I'm not condoning what he did. And I do feel for the child's family but know that what goes around comes around. He will get his just deserts.
BevPicks, I was talking about throwing rocks at John Couey. I don't know what the lottery winner did or did not do. I don't trust the media, but if he hurt a child he doesn't deserve to be free to go out and do it again.
I am not "upset" but comments like the one below indicate to me that it is fruitless to continue this discussion.
"As long as this man is not out committing more crimes against nature and people why can't folks just leave him alone? Let the justice system do their jobs."
Again, I have no idea what the lottery winner in the article really did. However, if he sexually assaulted a child, he will do it again. How many more children does he have to hurt while we "just leave him alone?" The system is obviously not doing its job. By the way, I've had plenty of rocks thrown at me. Sometimes people throw rocks at you because of the way you think or the way you look. Sometimes it's because you are Black or because you are Gay..or maybe you're just a little odd. That's being judgmental and it is wrong. But there is no comparison between what was said in the Bible about a woman considered to be an adulterer and a sex offender. I hate it when people randomly quote scripture when it suits them. I rarely refer to the Bible to make my point, but as long as we're bringing God & religion into it, why not quote the statement Jesus made about hurting innocent children? "But who so shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea."
Again, I'm not trying to have the last word, but if I committed a sex crime against an innocent child, I would expect to pay my dues. Please do not compare me with a sex offender no more than you would a serial killer.
Duckman, it's happened. So maybe the victims of his crimes can sue him, although I don't think money will ever change their emotional trauma. Here's a great example (for Bev) of how the justice system is doing such a bang up job putting perverts away. This goes back to 2001 from the Associated Press.
LOTTERY WINNINGS TO GO TO MOLESTED GIRL
CLAYTON (MISSOURI): A man who won a $ 2.7 million lottery was ordered to give almost all of it to a girl he molested when she was six. The girl, now a teenager, still suffers mentally and emotionally from the 1992 assault, one of her attorneys said on Thursday. Thomas Bisso, 51, pleaded guilty to sodomy in 1994 and spent 120 days in prison. AP
Sodomy on a 6 year old girl? 120 days in prison? Huh?
Hmm, perhaps he could be made to have a sex change operation, have to pay for it himself, (through the nose), and get to live out the rest of his life in some hell hole where women aren't regarded to highly.
The whole things smacks of "where's the justice", going back to Justxploring's post about the girl who was violated being arrested while this guy wins.
Where indeed is the justice?
"Simple Man"THE CHARLIE DANIELS BAND
As far as I'm concerned there ain't no excuse
For the raping and the killing and the child abuse
And I've got a way to put an end to all that mess
Just take them rascals out in the swamp
Put 'em on their knees and tie 'em to a stump
Let the rattlers and the bugs and the alligators do the rest
yep!!! or i can perform a very special sex change on this pervert.
anybody who harms children sexually or otherwise should be punished severely.no excuse for people going around messing with small kids who have no capacity to even understand whats going on.i think they should have a zero tolerance law against these sick individuals.this molesting stuff ain't a "mistake" its very bad.
Again, probably not the most popular sentiment here, but unless the victims were awarded a cash award outside the "debt to society" that he has paid in jail, then they can't got after ANYTHING that he has made since he has been let out of prison. He could offer some money to the victims, and it would be a nice gesture, but he doesn't have to and shouldn't feel guilty about it (not giving them money).
I agree Mike, he is or was very sick. However, he is not required to pay any of that money to the victims, you see what I'm saying? He got punished for his crime, served his time, got out, got lucky with a lottery ticket, and won. The crimes and the lottery win are completely unrelated.
As I've said over and over, we don't know exactly what this man did. However, if you go back to the first page of this post and look at one of my comments, there was a case in Missouri where the lottery winner had to pay restitution to his victim. So this is not as black & white as you claim.
I can't get into the "feeling guilty" comment because I'll break my teeth from grinding them. We're not talking about stealing a car here. We're talking about violating a person.
Granted, the Justice System did not give him a harsh enough sentence...I mean this is a sick crime...however, it is what it is...he was freed and got lucky...that also is what it is...is bad for the victims' families, but the guy probably isn't legally obligated to paying them anything...although he probably should be morally obligated.
I am interested to see how this shakes down, because the guy is a sick bastard for what he did. But I get the feeling they are going to let him get out of there without paying monetary restitution. Listen to me...lol...I've been watching too much Michael Baldwin on the Young & The Restless...
I live in Florida. This is an article in my local paper. I'm not making excuses for this idiot, and he certainly has led a life of crime, but he isn't the child rapist/murderer that Couey or many of the others are. I just don't understand why he keeps getting such light sentences. I guess our jails are too crowded (with 21 year old rape victims) Exposing oneself to children is sick, but he could have been high on drugs. Again, no excuses. But I haven't read anything here that says he physically harmed anyone. I thought the other article said he assaulted a child.
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070131/NEWS/70131049/1075
Interesting read, thank you for that. Sounds like he is getting a rougher label than as might be the case...I believe he will be off the hook, unless he owes the state money.
I agree in part to JustExploring. THe ticket was won based on the criterea set forth in that lottery state. Be the claiment a former convict or not.
The Laws for *Civil* cases allot only 7 years to go after a CONVICTED sex offender for pain and suffering. This guy committed various crimes dating back to 1993. His lastest could have been the speeding ticket or disrupting the peace for all anyone knows ! The point is, without reading the court papers, getting the facts, its not appropriate to assume he is still acting under old behaviors. Gosh knows as humans we have no choice but to change through out our lifes. Ask yourself if your the same person you were 14 years ago?
I really would like to beleive this guy paid for his sins and in the mist of these years has found a life that is more socially acceptable in behavior.
Like the OJ case after the criminal trial the vicitim or their family can sue in civil court for damages. The fact the guy was found guilty makes it easier to win if time to file hasn't run out. BobP