Search

California man pleads guilty to Latina grandmothers lottery scamNews Story
A Los Angeles man pleaded guilty Monday to a federal charge for targeting Latina grandmothers in Long Beach and throughout Southern California in a scam involving a fake winning lottery ticket. Tito Lozada, 50, faces sentencing May 11 on a single count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. Two of three additional defendants previously pleaded guilty to the same charge and are awaiting sentencing in Los Angeles federal court. L
Feb 25, 2020, 1:39 pm - Lottery News

Thief yanks entire lottery ticket displays from two California businessesNews Story
Includes video report A lightning quick lottery ticket thief tried his luck twice, yanking California Lottery Scratchers display cases from counters in bold heists that were caught on camera at two San Gabriel Valley businesses. The crimes were reported Jan. 22 at Smoke Rings 4 and Daily Donut in San Dimas. Store security video shows the man, dressed in athletic wear, grab the Scratchers displays in a bear hug before sprinting away, leaving a flurry of lottery tickets in his wake. Both
Feb 20, 2020, 11:31 am - Lottery News

Lottery industry facing new threat in 'skill' gamesNews Story
State lotteries are grappling with the rapid spread of unregulated skill gaming machines, which are found in convenience stores, bars, restaurants and taverns across the country. While these machines have existed for some time, their manufacturers and operators have become increasingly aggressive in their roll out strategy, placing these machines in the front of stores and even replacing lottery self-service terminals with them. Individual lotteries predict these machines could reduce their r
Feb 19, 2020, 9:34 am - Lottery News

Pa. Lottery blames growth of skill games, lack of big jackpots for drop in profitsNews Story
The growing proliferation of so-called skill games at Pennsylvania Lottery retailers are having an impact on the lottery's ability to generate revenue to pay for programs for senior citizens, a lottery official told state lawmakers on Tuesday. Lottery executive director Drew Svitko told lawmakers skill games could lead to a $200 million decline in scratch-off ticket sales this year. That is a bigger loss than the $115 million hit last year. Svitko attributed the higher projection to the ri
Feb 18, 2020, 7:06 pm - Lottery News

California Lottery under fire for giving away $212,500 in Scratchers on 'Ellen'News Story
Comedian Ellen DeGeneres drew wild cheers from the studio audience of her television talk show in December when she announced each person in attendance would receive a $500 bundle of Scratchers tickets from the California State Lottery. Lottery officials saw it as a publicity boon, but a whistleblower complaint filed by some lottery employees argues the agency's giveaway of the tickets which have a combined face value of $212,500 should be investigated as a misuse of funds, according to docum
Feb 6, 2020, 5:32 pm - Lottery News

Massachusetts man sues 2 women, claiming they cheated him out of $4 million lottery prizeNews Story
A Massachusetts man says two women cheated him out of $4 million in lottery winnings by taking advantage of his inability to read or speak English. The man, Joao Luis DaPonte, said in a civil complaint filed earlier this month in Bristol Superior Court that when he initially scratched the Lottery ticket he purchased at Cafe Sao Paulo on Bolton Street in New Bedford on Nov. 23, he believed he had won $4,000 since the ticket said $4MIL below the number 26. DaPonte does not read or speak Engl
Jan 25, 2020, 2:24 pm - Lottery News

UK National Lottery hacker jailed for nine monthsNews Story
A cyber-criminal has been jailed for nine months for committing offenses against the United Kingdom National Lottery. Following a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation, Anwar Batson, 29, of Notting Hill, London, was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 10 January. He admitted four offenses under the Computer Misuse Act 1990 and one fraud charge. The NCA was notified of the attack against National Lottery accounts in November 2016. The customer database affected contained around nine m
Jan 13, 2020, 10:22 am - Lottery News

Mississippi men tried cashing in lottery ticket after gluing on the winning numbers, officials sayNews Story
Two Mississippi men are in custody after being accused of trying to claim a $100,000 lottery prize with a fake scratch-off lottery ticket. Mississippi Lottery Corp. spokeswoman Meg Annison said the two individuals came to the lottery headquarters in Flowood Monday morning seeking to claim the prize. Annison said lottery officials immediately determined the ticket had been altered. It appeared glue had been used. Annison said the Lottery Corp. has measures in place to ensure a ticket is
Jan 7, 2020, 7:12 am - Lottery News

Few filing claims in $4.3 million lottery scam settlement; deadline Jan. 7News Story
Victims of the largest lottery scam in U.S. history are expected to pocket only a small fraction of a $4.3 million settlement because of a lack of applicants laying claim to the money, court records show. But it's not too late. Claims can be made online through Jan. 7 and those for $10 or less require no proof of purchase. Larger ones require receipts dating back as far as 14 years. If you're claiming more than $10 they sure made it difficult, said Craig Johnson, a Manson resident w
Jan 2, 2020, 12:09 pm - Lottery News

Dad and his daughter got millions from IRS after claiming to win lottery, authorities sayNews Story
A Florida father and daughter claimed the government owed them $175 million in tax refunds on their lottery winnings. The IRS paid them $3.4 million before the agency realized the pair had never purchased a winning ticket, prosecutors say. Now, the Broward County pair, who say they're aboriginal indigenous Moorish Americans immune to government authority, are on trial in a Palm Beach federal courtroom accused of tax fraud. Court documents allege that Danielle Takeila Edmonson, 35, of Boynt
Dec 17, 2019, 10:14 am - Lottery News