Undercover officers catch store clerks keeping winning lottery tickets

Comment #57

RedStang — Fri, 09 May 2014 17:19:30 GMT

They should also make sure their giving real money back. You can't even trust money from a bank anymore.

Comment #56

savagegoose — Thu, 08 May 2014 22:36:08 GMT

macdonalds and burger king have managed to idiot proof food production. you would think lotteries could also manage it for prize collection.

even tho i now have an automated game, where the tickets are checked and played online, i dont trust the commission to ge4t it right and still check the numbers!

had my 1st prize of $32.90 the saturday just gone. and it all went as advertised

You are right of course, they are some well paid people in the commission, they should be able to... [ More ]

Comment #55

rdgrnr — Thu, 08 May 2014 16:55:21 GMT

It's a HUGE problem here.

And the lotteries don't even want to address it.

And that's a cryin' shame.

But there are players here that say that it's just stupid people getting ripped off and if they don't like it they shouldn't play.

But I think that's wrong.

If a certain segment of players has to accept getting ripped off for their legitimate winnings because they happen to be a little less intelligent or a little more trusting than the rest of us, then the whole industry is corru... [ More ]

Comment #54

savagegoose — Thu, 08 May 2014 07:15:08 GMT

here the min wage is $16 , and i think the clerks are more bothered about hAVING THEIR PH CALLS INTERUPTED, THAN STEALING FROM YOU.

Comment #53

Get paid — Wed, 07 May 2014 14:10:27 GMT

Great story: THIS SHOULD BE CALLED THE WILLIS WILLIS LAW.

Comment #52

RJOh — Sat, 03 May 2014 03:41:19 GMT

I'm lucky the clerks are honest where I shop. Tonight I made out two play slips and brought $10 worth of MM tickets and received 4 free QP MM tickets. I had read on the website I would get a free ticket with every $2 wager but I thought they were talking about when the magaplier was played. Had I known it applied for two $1 wager too I would have only played four blocks per play slip and got 5 free QP instead. On each of my $5 tickets it said congratulation you have won a free ticket so if the c... [ More ]

Comment #51

Lexi26 — Sat, 03 May 2014 03:17:51 GMT

Where I live in New York in many of the stores have lottery scanners that don't work . I had my own experience several times where I had to have the clerk scan the tickets and have been cheated out of my money. I know one store in particular that I no longer frequent because I have seen the clerk scan the tickets because the scanner is broken and say you have a $50 winner they will tell you that you have a $40 winner and keep your $10 it's up to you to know how much you won before giving the cle... [ More ]

Comment #50

Stack47 — Sat, 03 May 2014 02:53:54 GMT

I only went to a lottery headquarters once to cash a ticket, but cashed thousands of tickets at retailers. If in fact the majority of retailers or a very large percentage are thieves, the state lotteries must find other ways for players to buy and cash tickets.

I recall they even put warnings out to their retailers that they may be visited by the reporter.

When NC had their sting operation, calls were probably made to other retailers. Even if a clerk kept a winning ticket to cash in late... [ More ]

Comment #49

Jon D — Fri, 02 May 2014 12:49:10 GMT

A few years ago, I was watching an undercover sting in Southern California on one of those investigative news program. I wish I remember which show it was.

I think you're referring to the Chris Hansen Dateline to catch a predator guy series on crooked lottery clerks in Cali:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=chris+hansen+lotto+clerks

Very informative series. P3 and P4 have some juicy parts.

Comment #48

mrcraft — Fri, 02 May 2014 03:02:44 GMT

A few years ago, I was watching an undercover sting in Southern California on one of those investigative news program. I wish I remember which show it was. Well, anyways, they catch crooked owners, employees, etc. in California, but they also went on to try and do the same thing in New York. They were stonewalled by the NY Lottery. I recall they even put warnings out to their retailers that they may be visited by the reporter. I didn't understand why such the resistance by NY. I would have thoug... [ More ]

Comment #47

TheOtherOne — Fri, 02 May 2014 02:16:15 GMT

Plus it would require money spent by the TNEL and they only like collecting $ , not spending/reinvesting it

Comment #46

rdgrnr — Thu, 01 May 2014 23:46:11 GMT

With most states that don't do it, like Tennessee, it's probably because people would go into shock if they knew how much money was being stolen from innocent, trusting lottery players by corrupt, virtual agents of their State Lottery. They'd rather let the corruption and theft continue than allow their incompetence and long-term lack of security measures and protocols to be put on display.

Comment #45

gocart1 — Thu, 01 May 2014 14:42:11 GMT

.....Thanks Roger

Comment #44

gocart1 — Thu, 01 May 2014 14:39:43 GMT

Dont know why New York State will not do this

Comment #43

Stack47 — Wed, 30 Apr 2014 23:16:08 GMT

From the NY lottery:

Never hand a lottery ticket to anyone without knowing how much it's worth. (If you have to give a ticket to anyone to assess its value or collect winnings, sign the ticket first and always keep your ticket in view.)

And it says about the same thing on the back of the tickets in every state lottery I played. Do all the state lotteries really need to set up sting operations on their retailers because some of their players aren't very smart

Comment #42

Stack47 — Wed, 30 Apr 2014 04:19:48 GMT

It will be News when players learn how to sign the back of the ticket and/or ask for it back if the clerk says no winner, especially if the player is not sure if it's a winner.

Comment #41

rdgrnr — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 20:42:04 GMT

Yes and it needs to be in the news until all of the states start doing something about it.

Comment #40

NUMONEYNIJAS — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 18:08:37 GMT

This happens all the time them shady clerks doing this all the time.

Comment #39

fwlawrence — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 17:34:01 GMT

Clerks stealing tickets. Is this really a news story anymore

Comment #38

NUMONEYNIJAS — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 17:23:48 GMT

That's why I dont trust them ninjas they are dirty. They smell sooo bad how could you Trust a smelly person.

Comment #37

NUMONEYNIJAS — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 17:15:09 GMT

Comment #36

mrcraft — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 16:41:44 GMT

That's a great idea if the clerk's machine makes some kind of winning noise or jingle. No way for them to hide winners. Ours in California don't make any sound, but places I go, stores' lottery terminals behind the counters are connected to small monitors that instantly displays our wins. I still know beforehand exactly what I've won before redeeming.

Comment #35

dallascowboyfan — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 16:33:42 GMT

Agree, I know in Oklahoma if you give your ticket to the cashier it makes a noise when the clerk sends the ticket throhgh the reader to let you know that you won.

Comment #34

TNPATL — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 15:36:15 GMT

This would not happen IMHO if people just checked on their own, and signed their tickets. In Georgia I once had a guy TRY to say my ticket was not a winner, but I had the winning numbers circled, and when he was going to say Oh sorry you did not win he happen to turn the tickets over and realized I signed my signature. He was surprised. LOL

When I win big, no one can pull the wool over my eyes.

Comment #33

cdbellamy — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 21:29:38 GMT

I always check on my commputer by going to the nc website.

Comment #32

sully16 — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 20:59:58 GMT

I agree, would like to see Michigan get on board, I would take that job.

Comment #31

loonasee2 — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 18:59:55 GMT

Bad boyz,.....Bad boyz ,.......whatcha gonna do when they come for you,......................................bookum Dano,......

Pack you towels ,and ride your camel back to the other side of the pond.

Comment #30

Long Odds — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 18:46:51 GMT

Slow news day I guess. The story highlights a sting that occurred in 2009 and 2010? There was a heartwarming story some years ago about an elderly woman playing a scratch-off ticket in NYC (Queens, I believe) who had a million dollar winner but threw it out mistakingly believing it was a loser. The store owner/clerk recognized it as a winner, knew the regular customer who had played it, and notified her- she later split it amongst her adult children.

Comment #29

psykomo — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 16:10:41 GMT

KD:

They need to do these operations in every state!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Note:

If a retailer ever refuses to CASH-In my legal winning TICKET

think Psyko will ask Todd 4 permission 2 post store name number clerks first

name on The Lottery Post !

BUT:

First, Psyko would report it 2 that states Lottery Commission and then would ask

Todd if could have a little help from The Lottery Post as my backside BACK-UP

Comment #28

rock_nc — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 15:42:33 GMT

Patel is a family name in India and is found primarily in the Indian state of Gujarat. It means owner or tenant of royal land.

Comment #27

JezzVim — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 14:56:14 GMT

In PA we should have a scanner at each location. I have recently been seeing them behind the counters instead of where the customers can scan their own tickets or the self scanner is broken. BEAWARE!!

I check my own tickets thank you

Comment #26

Jon D — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 14:52:14 GMT

Yeah, interesting list of crooked clerks they showed there:

Yogesh Patel

Easam Sidar

Ala Sider

Sat Pal

Balraj Dhillon

Gurminder Dhillon

KEVIN RICKETTS

one of these things is not like the others...

And they even capitalized it

Comment #25

RedStang — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 14:25:54 GMT

Noticed NC added alot more ticket scanners to protect the players. I would'nt trust the young clerks there anymore then peter patel.

Comment #24

KillerDemo — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 06:14:17 GMT

They need to do these operations in every state. theres quite a few retailers who wont even let you cash in your winning ticket you bought there.

Comment #23

noise-gate — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 04:17:12 GMT

You thinking of these guys all the Men are Mr Singh in the Sikh Religion- all the woman are Mrs Kaur in addition to the other names added to those mentioned above.

Patel's are a common name- l would presume.

Comment #22

noahproblem — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 04:13:54 GMT

Do they offer chicken dinners for prizes

Comment #21

LottoBoner — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 02:43:00 GMT

Only one?

What are the odds of that? 1 in 575,000

Comment #20

LottoBoner — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 02:41:29 GMT

I agree.

They should get a nice firm kick in the pants by chester cheeto.

Comment #19

mediabrat — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 01:41:49 GMT

Patel is a very common surname in India, much like Smith and Jones are in English-speaking countries. The origin of the name Patel is even similar to the origin of names like Baker and Cooper.

Comment #18

rdgrnr — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 01:30:22 GMT

You'll never see anything like that in Tennessee as long as the Dragon Lady is calling the shots. If you call to report it, they just tell you to be careful. They don't even want to know where it's happening. They tell you to watch the readouts on the screen and listen for the music but half of the readout screens are facing the wrong way or are covered up by winning scratcher tickets taped over them. And a lot of them have the music turned off somehow. You don't hear anything at all. And I neve... [ More ]

Comment #17

maringoman — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 01:19:38 GMT

I don't know if Patel is a must have name for men of a whole tribe because even the stores at my town have Patel's behind the counter.

I know there is a country in Asia where people used to have one name only. I'm not sure if they changed that

Comment #16

dognabit — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 01:04:12 GMT

I'm glad that they're doing stings like these.

Comment #15

Stack47 — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 23:27:39 GMT

The story doesn't say if there were more arrests and two out of 6,700 retailers across the state in four years doesn't exactly sound like a crime wave. In North Carolina it's a Class H felony and with a maximum 4 to 25 months and under the circumstances, probation is appropriate.

Comment #14

noise-gate — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 22:21:37 GMT

Wanna bet that he goes by the name YOGI - not to be confused with Yogi Berra, considered one of the greatest catchers in baseball history.

Well this yogi got .. what a catch

Comment #13

savagegoose — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 21:27:57 GMT

they are supposed to hand losers back, maybe we all need to start videoing the transactions and explaining what we expect before handing the ticket over.

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Comment #12

chel$belle — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 20:25:46 GMT

Exactly what I've been saying all along. This has happened to me so many times! Even after I scan the ticket myself before handing the ticket to them! It's definately happening in Georgia and I had complained to them about it. One clerk threw mine in his trash bin and I ended up getting it back! It's disgusting

Comment #11

ONEDAY — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 20:04:18 GMT

ohio is the same if your ticket is a winner ..it will say in a mans voice winner..Winner

Comment #10

rcbbuckeye — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 19:42:15 GMT

In Texas, the TLC installed new terminals that play a tune if a ticket is a winner. So, it's hard for a clerk to cheat a customer. I still check my tickets and know what the winners are worth when I redeem them.

Comment #9

ThatScaryChick — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 18:36:58 GMT

I wish more states would do this.

Comment #8

maringoman — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 18:13:58 GMT

The first names on the video report of the culprits is one Yogesh Patel you cannot make these things up.

Comment #7

mamamary517 — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 17:48:27 GMT

Always scratch off the bottom to scan the bar code. The winners are easy, you see that you won. However, when it looks like a loser that is really when you need to double the ticket before you trash a winner by mistake.

Comment #6

mrcraft — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 17:00:12 GMT

Too bad the two in this story only got probation. In California, they ran similar stings and many are actually serving time.

Comment #5

ShowMeTheMoney$ — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 16:48:45 GMT

You shoud always check your own tickets yourself. It's not hard to do. I do. It can be a little frustrating though because sometimes those scanner machines are so slow.

Comment #4

LottoBoner — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 16:34:46 GMT

Nice story Todd!

I have a lot of deragotory, mildly racist, and politically oriented, and generallly wisdom infused bonehead comments to make with this one.

BUTT first

From my experience in NY, where I have in many posts complained about the scanners not being able to read the scratchies,

I think its because you cant scratch the back, but you have to scratch the front. ( I dont rememberm or know how I was scanning a scratcher since I hate them, BUTT!

If you notice the reporter dud... [ More ]

Comment #3

Marilyn222 — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 16:21:43 GMT

Good job

Comment #2

CDanaT — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 16:18:29 GMT

BEAUTIFUL

Comment #1

mypiemaster — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 16:10:22 GMT

Awesome!!!. This is always my fav. story, busting those S.O.B's. WTG NCLottery, you are doing a wonderful job for your people. Keep it up. That video was fun to watch.

Undercover officers catch store clerks keeping winning lottery tickets

Lottery Post — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 16:08:21 GMT

Includes video report

A man walks into a convenience store and asks the clerk to check his lottery tickets. Can you scan these and see if there are any winners? he asks. The clerk scans the first ticket and freezes, staring at the screen that shows it's a $1,000 winner. The clerk shakes his head, puts the ticket to the side and tells the customer, There's nothing on them.

What the clerk doesn't know is that the customer is an undercover officer wearing a hidden camera, which captures the... [ More ]