Sting nabs Minnesota lottery clerks stealing winning tickets

Comment #30

PrisonerSix — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 21:43:13 GMT

I've dealt with the same thing. In fact, there was a chain of convenience stores in the New Orleans area that wouldn't cash any ticket, even for $1. All they would do is give another ticket. I don't know if they are still doing that, but my only recourse was to simply not shop there anymore.

I usually run into this problem when I've tried to cash a $20 or $50 ticket at a small store like Circle K. They don't keep much in the register, so they aren't always able to cash them. What I do in t... [ More ]

Comment #29

BORGUSX — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 04:25:26 GMT

I was wondering about the rule if you can keep your winning ticket or not? Since,I think if a winning ticket get scanned then it would disable something on or in the ticket.

1.Am I wrong?

2.I got my winnings before from a ticket,but I didn't get a receipt,so there is not a good chance that I cannot get my receipt,right since it has been since January that I got my winning

Comment #28

Texas Joey — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 03:03:38 GMT

Comment #27

LckyLary — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 18:21:20 GMT

Make sure that the display is facing you. Seen some Stores that have it turned around toward the Agent's view. also watch for sleight-of-hand where they may hoard a few losers or small winners ready to quicky swap in under the scanner. Also, don't Rush; if they look close to a win, double check. I find discarded ones that turn out winners because one symbol was missed.

Powerball Territory may soon be everywhere .

Comment #26

tg5150 — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 16:03:51 GMT

...'Use an electronic ticket checker, if available at the store, to verify the ticket and winnings'...

These should be mandatory at all stores that sell lottery tickets

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they have them in New York they dont always work and go back only 30 days

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I used the Mega Millions electronic ticket checkers in the Chicago area for years. Granted they were not perfect, but they were much better than handing over your tickets to a stranger and depending on him to tell yo... [ More ]

Comment #25

Halle99 — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 13:01:10 GMT

Nab them all......

Comment #24

sirbrad — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:07:48 GMT

I am not going about nothing the wrong way, friend. I have never been taken. If you are going to play lottery games you better at least educate yourself about how they work. I did. I personally never had a problem with this, but I was also well prepared when I cashed my tickets in. If you are going to spend hard earned money on lottery tickets you should know what you are doing.

Not just be lazy about it and have them scanned. No one should be cheating you, but you can't trust anyone and you... [ More ]

Comment #23

LotteryJunkiE99 — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 06:24:54 GMT

NO NO NO NO NO MY FRIEND, YOU ARE GOING ABOUT THIS THE WRONG WAY. ANYONE - AND I MEAN ANYONE, SHOULD AND MUST BE ABLE TO PLAY WITHOUT BEING CHEATED.

THIS IS OUTRIGHT WRONG THAT PEOPLE ARE BEAING CHEATED OUT OF MONEY. BC THIS IS WHAT THIS IS.

WINNINGS ARE MONEY, AND CUSTOMERS WHO WIN ARE CUSTOMERS. SO.... THIS IS CRAZY. AND I'LL TELL YOU WHAT, it makes me crazy as hell when customers get cheated out of money.

I DON'T CARE if you're a millionaire or on welfare, what yours is y... [ More ]

Comment #22

sirbrad — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 03:15:20 GMT

I think people who are too stupid to know that their tickets are winners should not be playing them. I don't see how anyone gets taken like this. I always keep losing tickets and no cashier ever tried to keep them.

Comment #21

Todd — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 21:24:00 GMT

The most important thing you can do is to complain to the state lottery (in writing) every time something like that happens. Each new infraction = 1 new, separate complaint.

Lottery retailers have to get approved to sell the lottery, and they go through training and certification. There are a set of rules that retailers must abide by. If a retailer is consistently breaking the lottery's guidelines, then I'm sure the lottery will threaten them.

Ultimately, the lottery has the power to suspe... [ More ]

Comment #20

Kaptainess — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 16:15:22 GMT

THANK YOU!! Todd - What can WE do to make the retailers pay? I can only cash in my tickets at one in a neighborhood of about 10 retailers. I am told that they can only pay me by money order by one retailer, the others just refuse to pay me. Once I had to go out of town to cash my ticket and I live in Philadelphia, Pa!

I just think that if I pay you cash to play my ticket, I should be paid in cash when I win, up to the limit of course. I can see if I had 5 - 500.00 tickets and you don't have t... [ More ]

Comment #19

computerhead723 — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:31:03 GMT

they have them in New York they dont always work and go back only 30 days and must be free fromm the sun ...otherwise its too much glare to read the bar code on the ticket ;

and never are the checkers in a covient spot for the lottery player they always seem to interfeer with lottery players ; I wonder if the machines are leased ???? IF SO THEN HOW MUCH THE CONTRACTOR GETS

Comment #18

computerhead723 — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:25:02 GMT

your right ......in my neighborhood store there from - Palistine - and all the clerks have to do is cheat like hell ...but be right only once

Comment #17

time*treat — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 07:48:40 GMT

I'd like to see how the Iowa stores would have done with prizes like these

www.lotterypost.com/news/190538

$1 - $100 prizes aren't nearly as tempting as multi-thousand dollar ones might be.

Comment #16

KY Floyd — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 06:39:57 GMT

That's fine for tickets that can't be cashed at a store, but doesn't mean much if a clerk wants to give you $50 and then take the rest for a ticket that's worth a few hundred bucks. I expect that thenlottery deliberately uses tickets with big prizes so that the dishonest clerks can be charged with a felony, but if they don't also use smaller tickets means that somebody with a smaller ticket isn't part of a sting operation.

Comment #15

KY Floyd — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 06:38:37 GMT

The names certainly suggest something about ethnicity and ancestry, so noticing it doesn't necessarily suggest that you're a racist. OTOH, that you don't know that ethnicity or ancestry doesn't tell you anything about their nationality or citizenship does suggest that you're an idiot.

Comment #14

four4me — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 04:08:14 GMT

In Baltimore and most other big city's most immigrants belong to a coalition the coalition works very hard to keep their coalition intact you come here get a job and a place to live provided by the coalition you pay the coalition x amount of dollars and donate some of it to the center so they can bring another family member here. It becomes a never ending circle as you live and work in the community your debt gets paid and you are free to pursue the pursuit of happiness.

The more money you br... [ More ]

Comment #13

Todd — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 03:37:49 GMT

I agree with that - which is why I made that point #1 of things to do to avoid a stolen prize at the bottom of the article. But, the problem is that most people handing their ticket over are doing it in order to determine if it's a winner (they don't know it's a winner yet), and most people would not dream of signing every lottery ticket they get checked.

(I know, some people do that, but most people don't/won't.)

So that's what makes the rest of the points in the article so important. Vi... [ More ]

Comment #12

MaddMike51 — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 02:37:32 GMT

Sign your ticket before having a clerk check it.A clerk would have to be as dumb as a post to try cashing an already signed ticket.

Comment #11

tg5150 — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 02:26:16 GMT

...Use an electronic ticket checker, if available at the store, to verify the ticket and winnings...

These should be mandatory at all stores that sell lottery tickets. Players can check their own tickets, which allows store employees to concentrate on store work.

Players don't have to bother store clerks with checking losing tickets. And if you have a winning ticket, you will know it is a winner and how much it is worth before you hand it to the clerk.

Players should not have... [ More ]

Comment #10

time*treat — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:18:36 GMT

Thief of high-stakes begins making license plates.

Comment #9

maringoman — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:15:19 GMT

I'm gonna ignore the names and ethnicity issue and just state my disgust for the thieving lottery clerks. I hope they be banned from ever working at places that sells lottery. If everybody just told the truth and led honest lives there would be world peace

Comment #8

JONNIE — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 22:08:05 GMT

This is outrageous. Its hard enough to get people to pony up their hard earned dollars and even play the lotto these days, nevermind the difficulty in actually beating the odds and getting a payout. Now we have 2nd guess the retailers that they might be scamming us out of the $$$? I like these undercover busts- maybe it will deter a would be lotto cheat for fear of getting busted.

Comment #7

MaddMike51 — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 19:06:49 GMT

I hope that while they are going through this process that they also note which retailers refuse to pay out the prize. There is nothing more aggravating than taking a winning ticket to a retailer only to be told we can't cash that ticket.

If a store wants to be a lottery retailer, they should be required to cash all winning tickets less than $600, no ifs, ands, or buts.

I couldn't agree more.My wife recently won $500 on a scratch off ticket and we spent most of the day and most of a... [ More ]

Comment #6

Todd — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 19:05:33 GMT

Most of the time they do it by working in someone else's store for a few years to save up money for their own store. People within the Indian community help each other out in this way -- they leapfrog off of each other. They also hire within their own ethnic community. Very closed-loop. So if someone is starting a store, they will look for (and hire) others within their community who eventually want their own store. They know their employee will work all the time, 6-7 days per week, many hours p... [ More ]

Comment #5

Littleoldlady — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 18:54:14 GMT

I noticed the names, too. It just seems to be the trend that these are people who come into our neighborhoods and set up stores though for the life of me, I can't figure out how they do it. They come to our counry and the next day or so, they have a store.

Comment #4

Todd — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 18:38:37 GMT

One can imagine that this article (the subject matter) is a hot topic of conversation among lottery directors. Hopefully every state lottery has done this, or is planning to do this undercover ticket redemption.

I hope that while they are going through this process that they also note which retailers refuse to pay out the prize. There is nothing more aggravating than taking a winning ticket to a retailer only to be told we can't cash that ticket.

If a store wants to be a lottery retailer,... [ More ]

Comment #3

JAP69 — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 15:43:49 GMT

Yea I noticed that too.

Comment #2

rooster8786 — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 15:27:21 GMT

Not to be racist or lump everyone together stereotypically, but look at the names of the accused. After they get through the legal system, maybe the Immigration system should check them out.

Comment #1

charmed7 — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 14:35:17 GMT

It's hard out here for everyone. Some have had to trim the FAT, alittle

more than others, some people get desperate, make wrong choses

Its not worth goin to JAIL

Sting nabs Minnesota lottery clerks stealing winning tickets

Lottery Post — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 14:24:24 GMT

Investigations will expand after lottery ticket agents attempt to redeem undercover agents' winning tickets

Five Twin Cities convenience store employees and three accomplices are facing lottery fraud charges after they were caught by undercover investigators allegedly trying to cash in winning lottery tickets for themselves.

The fraud was discovered after the Minnesota State Lottery's security office and the state's Alcohol Gambling Enforcement Division set up a sting operation to test whe... [ More ]