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Battle over Florida Lottery contract goes to courtNews Story
A Florida judge must decide if the administration of Gov. Rick Scott broke the law when the state lottery approved a contract worth over $700 million. Attorneys for the Florida Lottery and House Speaker Richard Corcoran squared off in court on Monday for several hours. Judge Karen Gievers did not immediately rule. Corcoran sued the state's lottery secretary last month, arguing the contract with IGT Global Solutions to run lottery games is illegal because it exceeds the Florida Lottery's au
Mar 6, 2017, 4:09 pm - Lottery News

Woman sentenced for stealing more than $400,000 from Missouri lottery winnerNews Story
A former Kansas City woman who stole more than $400,000 from a Missouri Lottery winner was sentenced Wednesday to five years in federal prison. Freya Pearson, 44, of Conyers, Ga., was ordered to repay $441,830 to the victim, a female 61-year-old former hospital housekeeper who won $2.4 million in the Missouri Lottery in 2008. But because of Pearson's scheme, the lottery winner is now financially insolvent and had to take a reverse mortgage in order to keep her home, according to federal pr
Feb 22, 2017, 8:35 pm - Lottery News

Florida Lottery sued by House over contractNews Story
Just another political battle masquerading as a lawsuit? Florida's House of Representatives filed a lawsuit late Friday accusing the Florida Lottery of illegally signing a long-term contract for ticket sales, escalating a feud between House Speaker Richard Corcoran and Gov. Rick Scott a little more than a week before the legislative session begins. Corcoran's decision to file the lawsuit represents a head-on confrontation with an agency overseen by Scott. In response, the governor's office
Feb 22, 2017, 7:40 am - Lottery News

Florida House Speaker prepares to sue LotteryNews Story
The Florida Speaker of the House is drafting a lawsuit that would pit the House against the Florida Lottery. At the heart of the issue is a contract between the Florida Lottery and gaming vendor IGT Global Solutions Corporation, which provides lotto vending machines. Last year, the Florida Legislature budgeted about $26.6 million for terminal machines, $5 million for instant-ticket vending machines and $2.9 million for full-service vending machines, according to a draft of the suit. The
Feb 15, 2017, 10:30 am - Lottery News

Iowa Supreme Court hears lottery rigging caseNews Story
The Iowa Supreme Court heard arguments Monday on whether purely circumstantial evidence was enough to convict a former lottery employee of rigging Iowa's Hot Lotto game to win a $16.5 million jackpot. Eddie Tipton was convicted of tampering with Iowa's Hot Lotto game and attempting to cash a ticket in early 2015, but an appeals court reversed his conviction on the charge of attempting to redeem the lottery ticket, finding it was barred by the three-year statute of limitations. The Iowa Sup
Feb 14, 2017, 4:47 pm - Lottery News

Lawsuit accuses Illinois Lottery manager of fraud in instant gamesNews Story
Three lottery players and a downstate bar have accused the Illinois Lottery's private manager of defrauding scratch-off players and retailers after an investigation found the lottery did not award many of the biggest prizes in its biggest instant games. In a lawsuit filed Monday in St. Clair County, the plaintiffs cited a December article in the Tribune that examined the lottery's practices in the years after the state handed over its management to a private firm, Northstar Lottery Group.
Feb 8, 2017, 9:43 am - Lottery News

Texas man pleads guilty to fraud in lottery scandal caseNews Story
A Texas businessman has pleaded guilty to fraud and admitted to helping lottery computer technician Eddie Tipton cash jackpots in a multi-state number-fixing scheme that netted $2 million. Robert Rhodes pleaded guilty in a Des Moines courtroom Monday. Iowa prosecutors will seek two years of probation. Rhodes says he helped Tipton try to cash a $16.5 million 2010 Iowa Hot Lotto ticket but suspicious officials never paid. Rhodes agreed to testify against Tipton and his brother, Tommy Tipt
Jan 11, 2017, 4:18 pm - Lottery News

Former MUSL official received severance amid lottery jackpot scandalNews Story
A prominent lottery official who was stripped of power after a subordinate allegedly carried out a prolonged jackpot-rigging scheme received a $284,000 severance payment, a recent tax filing shows. The Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) made the payment to its longtime executive director Chuck Strutt as part of a voluntary termination agreement signed March 31, according to its 2016 tax return. The filing, released by the group in response to a request by The AP, also reveals that its leg
Jan 10, 2017, 10:04 pm - Lottery News

Trials for Tipton brothers charged in lottery scandal delayedNews Story
Trials for brothers charged with ongoing criminal conduct in Iowa for allegedly fixing lottery games to collect jackpots have been delayed. District Court Judge Bradley McCall entered an order Wednesday moving the trial for Eddie Tipton to July 10. His trial had been scheduled to begin Feb. 13. His brother, Tommy Tipton, a former Texas justice of the peace, was facing trial Jan. 23. His trial date was moved to Sept. 11. Attorneys for both sides agreed to the rescheduling. Eddie Tipto
Jan 8, 2017, 10:58 am - Lottery News

Florida store employee arrested for 'micro-scratching' lottery ticketsNews Story
Includes video report Authorities say a Florida convenience store clerk was cashing in by cheating, while selling customers worthless lottery tickets. Lottery officials say he got greedy and tried to cash in too many big winning lottery scratch-off tickets at the Tampa Lottery District Office. One major red flag was when he tried to claim a $500 winning scratch-off ticket that hadn't even been scratched. For more than a year, lottery officials believe an employee of a Radiant conveni
Jan 6, 2017, 9:10 am - Lottery News