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California Lottery officials seized surveillance footage from store that sold Powerball ticketNews Story
Whoever bought the winning Powerball ticket from a Chino Hills, California, 7-Eleven remains a mystery, even to the store's owner. Balbir Atwal, who made national news last week when the public learned that his store had sold one of the jackpot-winning tickets, said he has no idea who the winner is. And he can't even look it up. Lottery officials seized the store's security camera footage and other materials that could contain clues about the winner's identity. California Lottery spokesman
Jan 20, 2016, 6:14 pm - Lottery News

Federal officials work to extradite Jamaican lottery scammersNews Story
Jamaican lottery scammer Sanjay Williams got off a plane in Charlotte, North Carolina, in June 2013, on his way to meet with the people who moved money for him. He was promptly arrested by U.S. law enforcement authorities, convicted in May and sentenced to 20 years in a U.S. prison. While the arrest on American soil spared authorities from extraditing Williams, rounding up his associate in the wide-ranging operation and 13 other suspects still believed to be in Jamaica is proving to be more o
Dec 26, 2015, 1:27 pm - Lottery News

New Oregon law allows lottery prize garnishments for overpaymentsNews Story
A new Oregon law, effective Jan. 1, authorizes the state Department of Human Services and the Oregon Health Authority to garnish Oregon Lottery prize payments greater than $600 to recover overpayments of public assistance, medical assistance and supplemental nutrition assistance. What does this new law, approved by legislators, mean to players? If a player claims a Lottery prize greater than $600 with the Lottery, the Lottery must check with DHS/OHA to see if the player owes an overpayment
Dec 24, 2015, 7:51 am - Lottery News

Ex-TSA agent, Atlanta police officer sentenced in lottery schemeNews Story
A Douglasville, Ga., man must serve 27 months in prison and one year of supervised release after pleading guilty for his role in a Jamaican-based fraudulent lottery scheme targeting senior-adult victims in the United States. Dominic Hugh Smith, 27, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Conrad Jr. of the Western District of North Carolina. Smith was ordered to pay $724,408.79 in restitution, the U.S. Justice Department said in a prepared statement. In June 2014, Smith pleaded
Oct 26, 2015, 12:29 pm - Lottery News

Wyoming Lottery shelves keno planNews Story
Lawmakers not happy with Lottery pushing the limits of law Some Wyoming lawmakers say they're bothered the Wyoming Lottery Corp. considered introducing keno without their approval and they expect to introduce legislation limiting the lottery. In keno, players try to match numbers with random numbers displayed on video screens at a restaurant or a bar. The idea has been withdrawn after meetings with the lottery board and state lawmakers, said lottery CEO Jon Clontz. The lottery has other
Oct 20, 2015, 9:09 am - Lottery News

Texas authorities had previously investigated brother of lottery cheatNews Story
By Todd Northrop The outrageous Hot Lotto rigging scandal that started in Iowa is now spreading into other states including Texas. Officials are taking a second look at a $570,000 winning multi-state lottery ticket purchased a decade ago in Colorado by a Central Texas judge. The investigation does not involve the Texas state lottery. Tommy Tipton, the subject of the investigation, is a Fayette County Justice of the Peace for Precinct 3, based in Flatonia. According to records from the T
Oct 14, 2015, 10:01 am - Lottery News

Lottery scam with a twist hitting Central TexasNews Story
How would you react if you heard, Congratulations, your prize has been reserved! over the phone? The message is part of a sophisticated phone scam plaguing Central Texas, and is responsible for stealing millions of dollars from Americans each year. Joann Keilberg and her husband Jim almost fell for it. The Smithville, Texas, couple received a call in July from someone claiming to work for Publishers Clearing House. I was happy, Keilburg said. The caller said the won couple won $3.5
Sep 5, 2015, 8:10 am - Lottery News

Florida Lottery winner outed as sexual predatorNews Story
At the Florida Lottery headquarters, Timothy Poole, 43, posed for a photo with an oversized check after claiming his $3 million Scratch-Off prize. But when the image hit the Internet, others recognized the 450-pound man as a registered sexual predator. In 2001, The Orange County Sheriff's Office arrested Poole on charges of sexual battery on a 9-year-old boy, records show. Before that, he was arrested in 1991 for stealing almost $20,000 in food stamps from Safeco Inc. of Ocala, where he worke
Dec 10, 2014, 5:24 pm - Lottery News

Cottage industry helps lottery winners dodge taxesNews Story
With few rules or law enforcement to stop it, a cottage industry has popped up to help lottery winners avoid taxes, child support, and other debts, potentially costing the state and federal governments millions in lost revenue. Enterprising merchants risking charges of aiding tax evasion are openly hawking losing lottery tickets on Craigslist and eBay to help winners offset the profits with phony gambling losses. If you need the losers to write off for taxes, read one ad, since removed, f
Aug 7, 2014, 11:33 am - Lottery News

Audit: Florida lottery department keeps shaky recordsNews Story
The agency overseeing the Florida lottery doesn't exactly have the winning ticket when it comes to keeping track of its taxpayer-funded property. At least, that's the conclusion of a review conducted by the office of the state auditor general, David W. Martin. Auditors used the Florida Department of the Lottery's own records, and determined that as of July 31, 2013, millions of dollars in public property purchased and used by the department was poorly accounted for. As a result, officials
Jun 18, 2014, 5:06 pm - Lottery News