(Scratch) Tix mystery has Lottery scratching its head
By David Weber
Friday, May 27, 2005

A South Boston woman believes she has a scratch ticket worth $3 million, but the Massachusetts Lottery says, ``Not a winner.''

Lacretia Green, 49, said she spent $10 on a Hold'em Poker ticket at Schubert's on West Broadway shortly before 1 p.m. Sunday. With her common-law husband, Ronald Watts, 59, by her side, she scratched the ticket in the store, revealing a thick red line through what appears to be a winning match.

``I saw that red line and I said, `What is this here? Is that how they mark the winners?' '' she said, recalling that she trembled when she began to think she had a big winner.

Green said the clerk agreed that the ticket appeared to be a winner, but when she ran the ticket through a lottery machine, it came back a loser.

Green, who is a tenants activist and president of the Old Colony Task Force, took the ticket to lottery headquarters yesterday morning. Officials there wanted to take her ticket to send it back to the printer for investigation, but Green and Watts opted to hold onto it until they can show it to their lawyer.

Lottery spokeswoman Beth Bresnahan said a normal winning ticket would not have a thick red line running through the middle of the card, but she added that lottery officials have not definitively decided the ticket is a loser.

Daniel ``Danny Angel'' Angelopolus, who runs real Texas Hold'em poker tournaments for charities on the North Shore, said the lottery game is complicated and confusing.

``It's very confusing,'' he said. ``And if it's confusing to people who play Texas Hold'em, then you can imagine what it's like for people who don't play poker.''

Attention Texas Players: A situation very similar to this occurred in Texas several months ago with a ticket called Set For Life. Two players KNEW that their Set For Life tickets were worth $1018 and $2509 respectively but the terminals said the their tickets were worth $20 and $10. Of course when the players approached the TLC, the TLC had to "investigate" first to make sure the tickets weren't altered. Records indicate that it didn't really take the lottery very long to realize it was a misprint, but the TLC didn't acknowledge it to the players in question. They kept them on hold for a while!

At any rate, the Texas Lottery knew about the validation problems but continued to sell the Set for Life tickets for another 6 weeks before recalling them. Something they clearly shouldn't have done. There is no telling how many players collected far less than the actual value of their ticket or how many tickets were winners but the terminals didn't show as winners. I cannot stress hard enough - check your own tickets and know the value before entering a store to collect your winnings. Not only do clerks steal players winnings but lottery terminals err too. A double whammy for players.

If you didn't read the email from the San Antonio player about Texas terminals erring, click here.

Wetzel prosecutor will refuse to collect on lottery bad checks
Parkersburg News and Sentinel
By MARY ROHRIG
May 27, 2005

NEW MARTINSVILLE - Wetzel County Prosecutor Timothy Haught says his office will not be a collection agency for video lottery retailers that accept bad checks from their clientele.

Haught also has instructed county and municipal law enforcement officers not to file criminal complaints for bad checks cashed by video lottery retailers that were written by individuals playing the video lottery machines.

"We have a problem with video lottery retailers who are cashing checks 10 to 15 times a night for $100 or more from the same person," said Haught. "Then the checks are bouncing and they're going to the police to file complaints for the bad checks."

Haught believes the video lottery retailers are effectively extending credit to the players, which he says is a violation of West Virginia Limited Video Lottery Act.

"The practice is equivalent to making a loan or accepting a marker from players in order to enable them to play video lottery machines," said Haught. "Not only is this practice prohibited by law, but it is also unconscionable because it preys upon the compulsive behaviors associated with gambling."

According to the West Virginia Lottery Commission, Wetzel County had 27 licensed video lottery retailers as of April 8. Three are located in Hundred, six in Paden City, one each in Pine Grove and Proctor, and the remaining 16 are in the city of New Martinsville.

Statewide, there were 1,733 licensed limited video lottery establishments as of April 8.

The state lottery law prohibits video lottery retailers from providing players access to an automated teller machine in the area where video lottery games are played, from accepting credit cards or debit cards for the "exchange or purchase of video lottery games," or from extending credit, "in any manner, to a player so as to enable the player to play a video lottery game."

John Melton, in-house counsel for the West Virginia Lottery Commission, pointed out on Thursday that there was nothing in the lottery regulations that prohibit the video lottery retailers from accepting checks.

"It says they can extend no credit. Writing bad checks could be construed as a form of credit since the person received money in exchange for a bad check, and the bar would then become a creditor," said Melton. "I don't disagree (with Haught), but I don't see the word 'check' in the statute."

Haught maintains that the section of the video lottery statute dealing with credit was ''designed to prevent video lottery retailers from enabling individuals to gamble beyond the limit of their means.''

"This check-cashing practice has resulted in numerous individuals overdrawing their accounts by significant sums of money in order to play video lottery machines," said Haught.

Haught's office will report incidents he believes are violations of the law to the State Lottery Commission.

"My office will request that the commission follow through with appropriate action against the retailer's license and a civil penalty, if necessary," said Haught.

The prosecutor encourages the retailers to review the law.

"They need to make certain that they are complying with all applicable laws," said Haught. "They're going to have to bear the risk associated with their check cashing policy. The prosecutor's office won't be a collection agency for these gambling operations."

He further encourages persons with knowledge of violations by the retailers of the Limited Video Lottery Act to contact his office at (304) 455-8220. Questions concerning Haught's policy can be directed to him at the same number.

Pair will testify against ex-lottery official
Under plea deal, men to confirm allegations they
were told where to buy $1 million ticket.

The Indianapolis Star
By Vic Ryckaert
June 1, 2005

Two men linked to a scandal at the Hoosier Lottery have agreed to testify against a former security officer accused of rigging a $1 million scratch-off game.

According to the terms of guilty-plea agreements filed Tuesday in Marion Superior Court, Chad R. Adkins and Daniel J. Foltz will admit to theft and testify against William C. Foreman, the former lottery official charged with telling them where to buy a winning ticket.

"This type of insider trading could devastate the public's confidence in the lottery," Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi said. "This is one occasion when the game was fixed. Those responsible need to be held accountable."

Brizzi said Adkins, 28, and Foltz, 31, must repay the $50,000 they split between them as the first installment of their jackpot.

Adkins and Foltz face a maximum of three years in prison under terms of the plea agreement. The agreement is expected to be accepted by a judge during a hearing Tuesday.

John C. DePrez, a Shelbyville attorney representing Foltz and Adkins, declined to discuss the details of the case but said both men have cooperated with investigators from the start.

Foreman, 59, is charged with theft and disclosing confidential lottery information. If convicted of disclosing lottery secrets, he could face up to 50 years in prison.

Foreman's attorney, Bryan E. Barrett, did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Investigators say Foreman told Adkins and Foltz that a winning ticket in the "$2,000,000 Bonus Spectacular" game could be purchased in southeastern Indiana.

Acting on Foreman's tip, prosecutors say, the men traveled to Otter's Grocery in Cross Plains and bought every ticket for that game -- $640 worth.

The alleged scheme unraveled in September when Adkins and Foltz claimed their winnings and lottery officials recognized Adkins as one of Foreman's friends.

Exactly how Foreman received the information remains unclear. Foreman refused to take a polygraph test and resigned his $52,800-a-year job Sept. 13. Prosecutors say he was a few months short of being able to claim full retirement benefits.