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Report: Minnesota Lottery Director haunted by auditNews Story
When Minnesota Lottery Director George Andersen went to work Monday to face a 10-hour meeting with legislative auditors, he acted like he was going to his execution, his wife later told detectives.Darlene Andersen also said that her husband feared that the couple would lose everything because of the audit.The report about Andersen's death, which was released Friday, shows how greatly Andersen's job troubles were weighing on him before he took his life at his Washington County home.Darlene An
Jan 30, 2004, 11:36 pm - Lottery News

Friends Say Audit Troubled Minnesota Lottery ChiefNews Story
George Andersen built the Minnesota Lottery from the ground up, and some who knew him say he looked upon it less like a bureaucrat and more like a proud and protective father.Andersen committed suicide Tuesday, a day after meeting with a government auditor examining the lottery's operations. He was found outside his home, and an autopsy determined he died of hypothermia in single-digit termperatures after cutting his wrists, said sheriff's Cmdr. Scott Malinosky said.Andersen's death has focused
Jan 29, 2004, 6:08 am - Lottery News

Audit finds misuse of Colorado Lottery fundNews Story
Legislation, rule changes seek tighter tracking of spendingColorado state leaders Tuesday unveiled plans to curb substantial problems uncovered by a newly released audit of Colorado's conservation trust fund, a multimillion-dollar pot of lottery profits that is supposed to pay for parks and recreation.A state audit released Tuesday found that more than $1.2 million of the fund's expenditures in 2002 were spent by local governments in ways the state does not allow.The audit also criticized 10 c
Jan 28, 2004, 9:20 am - Lottery News

New York Lottery Director NamedNews Story
Niskayuna resident Nancy Palumbo has been named to head New York state's Division of the Lottery.Palumbo replaces Margaret DeFrancisco in the $137,000 job. DeFrancisco will take over as head of the Georgia State Lottery.Since 1999 Palumbo's been the executive deputy commissioner in charge of finance and administration for the state Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation. She was also deputy commissioner at the agency.Palumbo, who has worked in state government for 20 years, has hel
Jan 28, 2004, 9:16 am - Lottery News

Minnesota Lottery Director Dies in Apparent SuicideNews Story
The longtime director of the Minnesota State Lottery apparently committed suicide Tuesday, a day after meeting with legislative auditors examining the lottery's operations, officials said.George R. Andersen, 53, had a wound that appeared to be from a knife, said Cmdr. Scott Malinosky of the Washington County sheriff's office. He said a note was recovered, but declined to describe it.Malinosky said authorities were called by Andersen's family about 7 a.m. after they found him outside their home n
Jan 27, 2004, 11:52 pm - Lottery News

Colorado Lottery trying to win back trustNews Story
The Colorado Lottery Commission took an important step toward sprucing up the agency's increasingly tarnished image this week by approving tough new conflict-of-interest rules.For a department that relies on ticket-buying citizens for the bulk of its money, a clean reputation can't be underestimated.The new rules prohibit employees from accepting any gifts from companies that do business with the Lottery. In the past, those same companies wined and dined employees, took them to Denver Broncos ga
Jan 16, 2004, 6:00 am - Lottery News

Kansas Lottery joins Amber AlertNews Story
Alerts will be transmitted to lotto terminals to be printedThe Kansas Lottery announced Wednesday that it joined the Kansas Amber Alert program, which helps locate missing and abducted children.Amber Alert was implemented in Kansas in March 2002. There are 96 Amber Alert programs nationwide.When an alert is activated by a local law enforcement agency, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation disseminates the information to other law enforcement agencies and media outlets to broadcast the information.N
Jan 15, 2004, 5:35 am - Lottery News

Colorado appoints new lottery chiefNews Story
An official with the Colorado Department of Public Safety's criminal justice division has been tapped to lead the Colorado Lottery, an agency under investigation and, auditors say, fraught with mismanagement.Margaret M. Peggy' Gordon pledged Monday to restore confidence in Colorado's lottery.'Gordon, 54, is the victim compensation administrator with the state's Office for Victims Programs, where she has served since 1997. She will take over the lottery's top job Jan. 1.She replaces Mark Zamarr
Dec 23, 2003, 5:20 am - Lottery News

N.Y. Lottery Director To Head Georgia GamesNews Story
The director of New York's lottery, Margaret DeFrancisco, was chosen Thursday to head Georgia's lottery games.Gov. Sonny Perdue, who announced the appointment, called her a can-do person and expressed confidence she will take our lottery to a new level. The Georgia Lottery Corporation has been without a permanent president and chief executive officer since Rebecca Paul, the founding director, jumped ship in September to run Tennessee's startup games.DeFrancisco, 54, has headed the New York ga
Dec 19, 2003, 3:16 am - Lottery News

Colorado lottery woes will be fixed, says state revenue directorNews Story
Colorado Revenue Director M. Michael Cooke on Tuesday pledged to fix Lottery management problems found by state auditors.Cooke's department includes the Colorado Lottery, where Mark Zamarripa resigned as director on Nov. 12, just hours before he was to meet with Cooke to discuss travel expenses questioned by state auditors. I think it's fair to say I'm continuing to look at expenses and other issues in the Lottery that have given me cause for concern, Cooke said. We want to change some of the
Dec 17, 2003, 4:35 am - Lottery News