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Man fleeing police leaves behind winning lottery ticketNews Story
By Kate Northrop One man's luck ran out after he ran from police and left behind a winning scratch-off lottery ticket. On Monday morning, deputies pulled over a car on I-75 after noticing a tag violation. The passenger in the car fled the scene and ran into the nearby woods, dropping a backpack containing a laptop, a winning lottery ticket, and a small amount of methamphetamine while doing so. To the suspect who ran on foot from our deputies on a traffic stop this morning on I-75, you
Sep 16, 2020, 12:12 pm - Lottery News

"Lottery Lawyer" Jason Kurland charged with robbing jackpot winners of millionsNews Story
Self-branded New York attorney is accused of stealing millions from his clients By Kate Northrop The self-titled Lottery Lawyer attorney who advised dozens of significant jackpot winners across the country is now being charged by New York federal prosecutors for stealing millions of dollars from his clients. Jason Jay Kurland has been charged with conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering in an indictment revealed today. Prosecutors are estimating that Kurland stole more than $80
Aug 18, 2020, 6:48 pm - Lottery News

Texas lottery thief caught after attempting to cash stolen ticketsNews Story
By Kate Northrop A thief who stole two whole bins of Texas Lottery scratch-off tickets from a gas station has been caught by police after he attempted to cash in a prize. On July 19 at 3:00 am, surveillance cameras captured the moment Kendall Hayes, 27, broke into the Copper Ridge Market on TX-29 in Georgetown. A man identified as Hayes pulled up to the convenience store in his car and smashed an object through the glass door. He then snatched two bins of scratch-off lottery tickets and dr
Aug 5, 2020, 6:31 pm - Lottery News

NC man who won $10 million in lottery charged with murderNews Story
Includes video report Motive behind killing unknown By Kate Northrop Three years ago, Michael Todd Hill, 52, struck it big after winning $10 million from a scratch-off lottery ticket. Now, he is being charged with the murder of a 23-year-old woman, Keonna Graham. Back in 2017, Hill, of Leland, North Carolina, worked in a nuclear plant. A dedicated scratch-off player, he frequented the Maco Depot convenience store and bought the fateful Ultimate Millions scratch-off ticket. His life l
Jul 23, 2020, 3:43 pm - Lottery News

Lottery scammer who stole thousands from elderly women pleads guiltyNews Story
Exposed fraud ring defrauded 16 known victims in a two and a half-year conspiracy By Kate Northrop A Colombian woman who helped a fraud ring execute lottery scams that systematically targeted grandmothers was found guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Tuesday, Luisa Camargo, 39, was sentenced to nine months in jail (that she already served) and two years on supervised release. After joining the fraud ring and causing thousands of dollars in losses, she alone will pay $38,069 in re
Jun 24, 2020, 7:48 am - Lottery News

Wisconsin woman receives probation for stealing and cashing $25,000 lottery ticketNews Story
Former convenience store clerk gets a total of three years' probation for theft and fraud By Kate Northrop Jessica N. Surratt, 32, of Eau Claire, Wisconsin was sentenced on Tuesday to two years of probation after pleading guilty to fraud for cashing a winning ticket worth $25,000. This is in addition to the one year of probation she was initially handed for the theft of tickets back in 2018. On June 16, 2018, Surratt stole nine scratch-off lottery tickets from the Portage Market Bask
May 28, 2020, 8:32 am - Lottery News

Daughter saves Massachusetts man from being victimized in sweepstakes scamNews Story
A dream of a lifetime seemed to have come true last week for an elderly Massachusetts man when he received a call from someone who claimed to represent Publisher's Clearing House. The caller told the elderly Swampscott man he had just won $8.5 million plus a brand new Chevrolet in their national lottery. All he needed to do, the caller told him, was to pay the $45,000 taxes due on the money and the prize would be his. It didn't occur to the man being scammed that the tax bill on $8.5 milli
Mar 19, 2020, 10:36 am - Lottery News

Man exploits Arizona Lottery vending machine flaw, gets $55K worth of free ticketsNews Story
A man is accused of exploiting a flaw in the Arizona Lottery vending machines to get over $55,000 worth of lottery tickets. Earlier this week, the Arizona Attorney general's Office filed charges against Everado Najera-Nava, 40, for computer tampering and fraud. Investigators say that Nava exploited a flaw in Arizona Lottery vending machines that gave him $54,699 worth of lottery tickets without paying for them. Police say Nava would enter his debit card into the machine to start the transa
Mar 15, 2020, 11:09 am - Lottery News

Michigan Lottery has few options to stop players who spend millionsNews Story
In June 2017, Viktor Gjonaj walked into a sleepy retail strip on Dequindre Road in Sterling Heights. He wasn't heading for the massage parlor, or the small Indian and Pakistani grocery store or restaurant or the hair salon. Instead, he went into the Michigan Lottery claim center at the northern edge of Sherwood Plaza. There, he showed his driver's license and Social Security card, completed a claim form, and left $2.5 million richer with a check cut to him as the prize for the 500 winning
Mar 9, 2020, 9:23 am - Lottery News

S.C. man loses more than $140K to 'you've won the lottery' scamNews Story
Includes video report Deputies say a man lost more than $140,000 to a lottery scam in York County, South Carolina. The resident was scammed out of $143,500 via the common you've won the lottery scam. In this case, deputies say two suspects a Ben Washington and Shirley Marsh informed the victim he had won $2.8 million. Shirley reportedly told the victim to send $3,500 to an address in Emporia, Kansas to be able to receive the money. After that money was sent, deputies say the scam
Feb 28, 2020, 10:31 am - Lottery News