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Trio charged in lottery ticket theft plead not guiltyNews Story
By Todd Northrop An Iowa woman, her boyfriend, and her mother have all plead not guilty to charges of stealing a winning scratch lottery ticket and working together to attempt to claim the prize. (See 3 charged in theft of $250,000 lottery ticket, Lottery Post, Aug. 5, 2016.) The boyfriend, Johnny Long Jr., Monday entered his written plea in Buena Vista County District Court to theft of a lottery ticket or share. The Sioux Rapids, Iowa, resident is 26 years old. His trial is set for Sep
Aug 16, 2016, 9:02 am - Lottery News

NY man sentenced to 4+ years in prison for lottery scam targeting elderlyNews Story
A New York man who ran a bogus lottery scam, in which elderly people were told they won millions but would have to pay taxes in advance to receive a payout, has been sentenced to more than four years in federal prison and ordered to repay more than $733,000. Wilder Vladimir Merelan, 29, of West Hempsted, New York, was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison by Judge Mark L. Wolf in U.S. District Court in Boston, according to the U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz's office. Wolf also ordered him to p
Aug 11, 2016, 2:13 pm - Lottery News

Appeals court hands loss to New Jersey sports betting effortNews Story
A federal appeals court on Tuesday dealt another defeat to New Jersey's years long attempt to legalize sports betting, setting aside the state's legal challenge to a federal betting ban. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling invalidated a law passed by New Jersey in 2014 that would have allowed sports betting at casinos and racetracks. The court found New Jersey's law violated the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, which limits sports betting to the handful of states
Aug 9, 2016, 11:07 am - Lottery News

Iowa court reverses part of Tipton's lottery fraud convictionNews Story
An Iowa appeals court on Wednesday upheld a former lottery employee's conviction for rigging the computer system to generate the winning ticket in a $16 million jackpot, but reversed a conviction for attempting to cash in on the ticket. The conviction stems from Eddie Tipton's work for the Iowa-based Multi-State Lottery Association, or MSLA, which produces computers that generate random numbers for lotteries in multiple states. As an employee of the association, Tipton was barred from playing
Jul 28, 2016, 8:23 am - Lottery News

Lottery winner invested $3M in crystal meth ringNews Story
Georgia man pleads guilty to drug trafficking, gun charges A Georgia man who won $3 million in a scratch-off lottery game last year invested his winnings in a crystal meth trafficking ring, according to federal prosecutors. Ronnie Music Jr., 45, pleaded guilty last week to federal drug trafficking and firearm charges. Music decided to test his luck by sinking millions of dollars of lottery winnings into the purchase and sale of crystal meth, U.S. Attorney Ed Tarver said. As a result of
Jul 26, 2016, 2:38 pm - Lottery News

Eddie Tipton's new trial delayed until 2017News Story
The second trial for a former lottery official accused of fixing jackpots in five states will be postponed until next year. An Iowa prosecutor and Eddie Tipton's attorney told a judge Wednesday they've agreed to a Feb. 13 trial date. The judge hasn't yet set a location for the trial. The former information security director for the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) was convicted last year of fraud for attempting to rig a 2010 Iowa Hot Lotto drawing. He's appealing. After his convic
Jul 1, 2016, 9:53 am - Lottery News

Lottery rigging trial to be moved out of Des MoinesNews Story
New venue to be determined later A new felony trial for a former Iowa lottery security official already convicted of scheming to win a $16.5 million jackpot will be moved out of Des Moines, a judge has ruled. Eddie Tipton, formerly an information security director for the Multi-State Lottery Association, was convicted last year of two fraud counts stemming from an attempt to rig a 2010 Hot Lotto drawing and claim the winning ticket purchased at a Des Moines QuikTrip. After his convictio
Jun 27, 2016, 2:19 pm - Lottery News

Scientific Games says exec stole company secretsNews Story
A company that works with more than 40 state lotteries in the U.S. and several overseas says in court filings that a key executive orchestrated a massive theft of its most-prized secrets before he resigned to accept a position with a rival company. Scientific Games International Inc. is asking a federal judge to prevent the information from being used outside the company in the multibillion-dollar lottery industry. The company, with offices in Alpharetta, Georgia, filed the civil lawsuit W
Jun 24, 2016, 12:40 pm - Lottery News

Convicted computerized drawing fraudster argues Iowa court appealNews Story
The attorney for a former lottery official accused of fixing jackpots in several states argued Thursday that his client's conviction last year on fraud charges should be thrown out. Eddie Tipton, the former Multi-State Lottery Association computer security director, appealed his July 2015 convictions related to fixing an Iowa Hot Lotto game in 2010, which resulted in a 10-year prison sentence. He is free on bond during the appeal. Tipton's attorney, Dean Stowers, told a three-judge Iowa Co
Jun 16, 2016, 8:18 pm - Lottery News

South Florida musician gets prison term for lottery fraudNews Story
A South Florida musician who helped funnel money from elderly victims of a $500,000 lottery hoax was sentenced Tuesday to three years and five months in federal prison. Delroy Drummond, aka Top Banga, 26, of Hollywood and Miami Gardens, admitted he worked with allies who contacted seniors all over the U.S. and duped them into believing they had won a lottery prize. The victims were told they had to pre-pay several thousands of dollars in taxes and fees before their winnings could be turned
Jun 1, 2016, 8:07 am - Lottery News