SYRACUSE, N.Y. — An Onondaga County Court judge who dismissed attempted grand larceny charges against two brothers accused of stealing a winning $5 million lottery ticket in 2006 ruled the crime was beyond the statute of limitations.
Judge Joseph Fahey upheld other charges brought against Andy Ashkar, 34, and Nayel Ashkar, 36, who are accused of taking a scratch-off lottery ticket from a customer at their father's convenience store on Oct. 27, 2006.
Prosecutors contended that because the brothers waited to claim the winnings until March of last year, the five year statute of limitations had not expired. Andy Ashkar is accused of taking the ticket from Robert Miles at The Green Ale Market on East Fayette Street in Syracuse. He allegedly told Miles he'd won $5,000 and then gave him $4,000, taking a $1,000 fee for the store.
Six years later, on March 1, 2012, the Ashkar brothers took the ticket to the lottery office to claim the $5 million.
Defense attorneys for the brothers filed motions to have all the charges against their clients dropped.
Fahey wrote that the evidence presented to a grand jury established that the theft occurred in 2006 but would have needed to be prosecuted within five years.
He said it appeared that "the People concocted their theory of prosecution for the crime of Attempted Grand Larceny in the First Degree allegedly committed on March 1, 2012 as a means to circumvent the statute of limitations issue presented under the facts of this case.
"Creative as it may be, it is nevertheless unsupported by law," Fahey concluded.
The judge upheld the rest of the indictment, which included fourth-degree conspiracy charges against the pair. Andy Ashkar is additionally charged with criminal possession of stolen property in the first degree, a Class B felony.
The B felony Andy Ashkar faces calls for a minimum sentence of 1 to 3 years in prison and a maximum of 8 1/3 to 25 years if convicted.
The conspiracy charge is a Class E felony, which carries a maximum sentence of 1 1/3 to four years in prison. The minimum is conditional discharge or probation. The brothers' father, Nayef Ashkar, was indicted by a grand jury on conspiracy charges in May. His trial is scheduled for Sept. 9.
The brothers' trial begins next week.
It's going to be interesting to see how this plays out in court, I hope the jury does the right thing, I also have to wonder what evidence will be excluded from testimony.
So let me make sure I have this correct. It's the District Attorney who is attempting to circumvent the statue by establishing that this criminal activity continued into 2011 and not the two brothers who as a part of their criminal conspiracy deliberately waited it out until that so called statue expired to cash in a ticket they stole.
i hope they get the max term and no cash.
I hope they are convicted what's the old saying "if you do the crime you do the time".
I hope the real winner gets the money. $5 million is a lot to lose. It is odd that these two brothers waited on the ticket for over 5 years. Maybe, they thought that they could get the winnings legally then and not be challenged.
If the crack-head accepted $4000. in cash, I think he gave up his right to the ticket.
and that makes it okay? i hope they get nibbled to death by geese.
What's also crazy is that NY has that $500,000,000 Extravaganza scratch-off game that ran for 5 years, alowing for someone to claim a win 6 years later, a year after the end date.
Our scratch games in CA only run around a year or less, and then you have 180 days to claim after end date.
That long time between purchase and claim just screams fraud. Like that Hot Lotto incident a while back claimed by the lawyer hours before deadline.
If they wait that long, there's something wrong.
Didnt see anything about this, but has the real winner got any of his cash yet?
i don't know what to think
lol I like these crime rhymes!!
"if you do the crime, you do the time"
"If they wait that long, there's something wrong."
if the glove don't fit you must a quit!! oj simpson trial
"If they wait that long, there's something wrong."
Yeah, I just made that one up, glad you liked it!
Yes, I think he did get his money.
Yeah, the doper already said he knew it was a $5 million ticket when he handed it to the guy. He accepted the $4000. in cash and if the clerks would have been smart enough to cash in the ticket while the doper was busy doping up his $4k we would have never heard about this story.
All of it?
Not so lucky: $1m lottery winner left empty-handed after shop worker pockets his prize
By MAIL FOREIGN SERVICE
UPDATED: 03:49 EST, 23 October 2009
A shop worker pocketed a customer's $1 million winning lottery ticket, claimed the prize and left town, possibly back to his native Nepal, authorities said.
Police have seized more than $365,000 deposited in banks by Pankaj Joshi, a University of Texas at Arlington student who left his job at a Grand Prairie convenience store in June, according to court documents.
Investigators said a 67-year-old customer - named as Willis Willis - came to the Lucky Food Store, in Grand Prairie, Texas, to have a Mega Millions ticket and two Cash 5 tickets scanned, because he had not been able to locate the winning numbers.
Unlucky for him: The Lucky Food Store in Grand Prairie, Texas, where Willis Willis had his lottery ticket swiped
Joshi scanned the tickets - the Mega Millions ticket was a $1 million winner - but only gave the customer $2 for one of the Cash 5 tickets.
Joshi later went to Austin and cashed in the Mega Millions ticket, receiving $750,000 after taxes, a search warrant affidavit said.
Authorities are looking into the possibility that Joshi has gone back to his native Nepal or elsewhere in South Asia, said Hector Gomez, the deputy U.S. marshal in Austin.
'It’s fair to say [Joshi’s] been running since July 29,' Gomez said.
'So he has a bit of a head start on us. But he’s still only one mistake away from getting caught. It’s early in the investigation and we are still developing information about his relatives, family and the places where he likes to hang out.'
The Texas Lottery Commission received complaints from store employees saying that Joshi never played the lottery.
The employees told lottery officials they thought that Joshi had obtained the ticket fraudulently, court documents said.
Another view of the store where the $1 million ticket was allegedly stolen
Investigators confirmed that the customer, who was a regular at the store, bought the winning ticket on May 29 and went to the store to have it scanned on May 31.
On June 25, Joshi cashed in the winning ticket at an Austin Lottery Claims Center, then opened several bank accounts using the $750,000 in winnings.
'We intend to try to make the victim... as whole as possible,' said Patty Robertson, Travis County assistant district attorney.
'We are attempting to try and recover the remaining stolen money.'
A Travis County grand jury indicted Joshi in September on one count of claiming a lottery prize by fraud, a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Bail has been set at $10 million on the warrant.
Bobby Heith, Texas Lottery Commission spokesman, said players should sign lottery tickets as soon as they buy them, Heith said.
'Signing the ticket makes it almost impossible for someone else to cash,' Heith said.
Rahman said even though Willis is upset about the missing money, he still buys lottery tickets at Lucky's.
'He still trusts us,' he said.
**** Beware of shady Clerks.....
I never trust them cashiers they are dIrty. I always make sure what amount I won. I also sign my power ball mega mills super lotto plus. That dude should of signed his ticket btw should of went to the nearest lottery office anything over 600 u won't get cash anyways u have to send it to the lottery via snail mail
Or take it in person to the lottery office then get the check in the mail
Or pick it up @ the lottery office. they need to be in prison for along time
Was this guy that got ripped off a old black guy ?
I hope the true winner got his money. It's depressing to know that there are some people will do terrible things to steal money.
PSYKO>takes>D>PLEDGE:
never say anything about a judge (PSYKO agreed w/this JUDGE)>TRUST>HIM!!
Todd>say anything (PSYKO agreeD>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><TRUST>TODD!
Todd>say anything Lottery Post News (reports) & Lottery Post member respond
Lottery News MUST BE FREE SPEECH >>R>>we R>>
Lottery Post:
Todd is "stronge">DON't TAKE "Lottery Post New's"!!!!!
AWAY>>>>"News is Freedom">>>!!!
THANK>>>"GOD" >>Freedom">Todd
He was a crack addict and they gave him $4000. for his ticket. I think it was fair.
Well alrighty then (I think).
ok so judge says they wont get charged because of statute of limitations. on the thft,. but ity doesnt mean the lottery will pay them the money. surely they have a duty to not pay it out to the wrong people. and i cn see a case for not paying these guys.
If it turns out they have legal right to the ticket, the state will pay.