Florida sheriff fears lottery winner murdered

Comment #26

myturn — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 10:35:00 GMT

Authorities in Florida are offering a $5,000 reward for information on a multimillion dollar lotto winner who has been missing since April. The family of Abraham Shakespeare, 43, reported him missing on November 9, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office. When Thanksgiving passed without word from him, authorities raised the reward in an effort to get information, spokeswoman Donna Wood said. Shakespeare won $31 million in the Florida Lottery in 2006.

Lottery winners in other count... [ More ]

Comment #25

myturn — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 05:44:53 GMT

If only he was allowed to remain anonymous he might still be alive. It is completely ludicrous requiring winners to go public.

Comment #24

Nino224 — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 00:23:21 GMT

She also paid a friend $5,000 to deliver a card to his mother in his name. And she was using his cell phone earlier in the year. Guilty. Skip the trial.

Comment #23

LottoPools — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:27:40 GMT

Doesn't sound like a good outcome should be expected.

I started reading Burn by Linda Howard the other day. Starting in the second (I think) chapter of the book the main character begins encountering problems after she wins the lottery; may be a good chapter or two for lottery players to read. Sounds like this guy could have used the examples of what to do. The majority of the book is not about the lottery.

Comment #22

Starr920 — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:54:52 GMT

I just read that back in February 2009, Dee Dee Moore helped Shakespeare form a limited liability company, gave herself signing authority then transferred $1 million into her own account. She used the money to buy a new truck, Corvette, Hummer and vacations. She has now been named a person of interest in the case. Hopefully, she will be arrested soon.

Comment #21

rdgrnr — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 21:25:22 GMT

LoL, that's a good one.

Comment #20

Nino224 — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 17:34:30 GMT

Et tu, Dee Dee

Comment #19

fwlawrence — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 15:55:59 GMT

I'm surprised nobody has quoted (William) Shakespeare concerning this article. Could even the Bard come up with a story like this

Comment #18

KY Floyd — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 08:14:10 GMT

For anyone with good reading comprehension this (and most other stories about winners who suffer misfortune) makes the case for not making bad decisions about who to associate with and what to do with the money.

Comment #17

markp1950 — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 01:57:48 GMT

It sounds like safety should be the #1 priority.

Valenti described Shakespeare as a friendly man despite his criminal record, which includes multiple arrests and prison time for burglary, battery and not paying child support. But he said Shakespeare frequently traveled with a large entourage.

Now I wonder about that!

And who were those people that he traveled with?

Didn't, a few years back, somebody won $10 mil, I believe in Illinois, moved to Florida and get killed. I believe that... [ More ]

Comment #16

Dollar419 — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 00:07:30 GMT

This is such a sad, sad story. I guess some lottery winners just cannot handle winning.

Comment #15

Nino224 — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 07:59:16 GMT

(Catastrophic) news reports that Dede paid someone $5,000 to deliver a Christmas card, with his name, to his mother.

Comment #14

time*treat — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 06:30:40 GMT

(Bad) His relatives had not seen him since April.

(REALLY BAD) He was reported missing in November ... by a police informant.

Comment #13

dpoly1 — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 23:32:27 GMT

This makes the case for anonymous lottery claims

Comment #12

rcbbuckeye — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 12:41:07 GMT

More than the publicity, if he is dead, it's because of the parasites he chose to hang out with.

Comment #11

justxploring — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 09:03:21 GMT

Florida does not allow you to collect with a blind trust. Even if you claim the winnings with a trust, your name will appear in the press release. Still, once you collect your money, it's not very hard to disappear. With that kind of money you can pack up and hide in the Caymans.

I read stories like this once in a while, but the majority of big winners go on to enjoy their money and we never hear about them again. I think the lottery misery stories just get a lot more attention.

Comment #10

Nino224 — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 07:39:02 GMT

An entourage, some character named Big Man, and an writer/advisor who buys a house with your money right before you disappear?? That guy's a goner. My guess is Big Man and Dee Dee weren't satisfied with what he gave them and wanted more. I wonder who's going to pay for his funeral. My condolences to the grieving mother.

So the question is, besides not telling anyone, how do you protect yourself after you've won?

What exactly does a blind trust do for you

Comment #9

Prob988 — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 06:37:52 GMT

I hope he just left town to get away from it all for a while.

Comment #8

ThatScaryChick — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 05:22:31 GMT

So sad. I want to believe that the guy is ok and nothing bad has happened to him, but it sure looks like something horrible may have happened to him. I hope the family is able to locate him, so they can have some peace of mind.

Comment #7

corius$1918! — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:23:45 GMT

This is another illustration of why people should not go public after winning a large amount of money. Unfortunatedly not all states will allow you to do this. They care more about publicity than your life. I wonder what kind of relationship he had with his mother. If it was a good relationship he most likely would let her know he was okay so she woudln't worry.

Article said he had a large entourage. House he paid one million for sold to lady at 6xx,000, (strange). I fear the worst, I'd... [ More ]

Comment #6

rdgrnr — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:58:42 GMT

I'd bet that guy he gave a million dollars too - Big Man, knows where he is, the same as Dee Dee Moore.

I'd also bet that more people connected to this case are going to disappear.

Comment #5

dphillips — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:43:51 GMT

Perhaps, Florida did not require a photo opportunity; he just wanted to do one. If so, he should have been much wiser by not doing one. In New Mexico, a photo and a press conference are not required, but your name, amount, and your residence are public record. Did he ever consider?

1) a blind trust (if it were possible in his state). That would have kept the wolves from his door.

2) telling his gawkers/smoochers to contact his attorney, and at the same time, giving out cards to them so the... [ More ]

Comment #4

Classic47 — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:12:24 GMT

Yup, this is the kind of thing that makes me never win that much money. I think the safety of the participants should be more important than publicity. Too many greedy, crazy people out there to take the chance getting your name out there.

My ideal win would be a few hundred thousand. A lot of money, but not enough to get you famous.

I hope the guy's okay.

Comment #3

Littleoldlady — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 23:30:12 GMT

This is one reason why all winners should be allowed to be anonymous. In this day and age, and the relative attitude of some people, it is better to be unknown.

Find the body.

Comment #2

LadyMylena — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 23:17:31 GMT

I agree with you, and I thank my lucky stars that whenever I do win, I won't have to do that, here. It seems that it caused a whole WORLD of problems for him. If he could've been anonymous, things may not have turned out this way.

I realize the lotteries love a publicity stunt, but they really don't need it. I think they will sell PLENTY of tickets, regardless of whether every single person goes public. Some people will, some love the attention. NOT ME! I can just imagine the people that woul... [ More ]

Comment #1

Aeolus — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:41:32 GMT

This is part of the problem with not letting people claim their prizes without holding up a dumb check and answering dumb questions.

Florida sheriff fears lottery winner murdered

Lottery Post — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:36:15 GMT

A truck driver's assistant who won $16.9 million in the Florida lottery in 2006 is feared dead after not being seen by friends or relatives since April. Abraham Lee Shakespeare, 43, was reported missing by a police informant in November.

There are a lot of odd and bizarre circumstances in this case, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. We fear and are preparing for the worst. We're working this case as if it were a homicide.

Donna Wood, public information officer for the Polk County Sher... [ More ]