Posted on 02/19/2024 1:49:37 PM PST by nickcarraway
A Washington DC man who thought he won a jackpot worth $340m (£270m) has sued Powerball and the DC Lottery, who claim they published his numbers by mistake.
John Cheeks said he felt "numb" when he first saw Powerball's winning numbers matched his ticket in January 2023.
But when Mr Cheeks presented his ticket to the Office of Lottery and Gaming (OLG), his claim was denied.
"One of the claims agents told me my ticket was no good, just to throw it in the trash can," he told the BBC.
Instead, Mr Cheeks held on to that ticket and found a lawyer.
He is now suing the lottery for damages, in the amount of the Powerball jackpot, plus the interest he would have earned on it per day - totalling $340m.
'Accidental error'
According to court documents, Powerball and a lottery contractor, the DC-based Taoti Enterprises, claim the confusion arose from a technical error.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
Definitely he is owed something since those numbers were published publicly as being the right numbers.
another biden scam?
But they weren’t the actual winning numbers drawn.
I think so.
Imagine thinking you won $340 million - and THEN having some low-level state bureaucrat telling you “sorry, it was a technical mistake?”
Enough to make one go jihadi on the whole operation.
A variation on the old casino line of “That slot machine was malfunctioning. Sorry.”
I think Vegas Casinos have pulled the same scam.
Deny jackpot winners their millions.
True, but they were the numbers published. I’m not saying that he is owed the full amount, but the lottery corporation should be penalized for such a careless mistake.
We punish other corporations when they false advertise. It should be no different here.
Did the powerball jackpot drop?
If it did, they haven’t a leg to stand on here.
I don’t know if it did or not.
And what were the winning numbers? What if someone won and thought they lost and threw out the ticket?
Don’t they double check these things? Hey, aren’t lottery draws typically televised so you get to see the numbers as they’re drawn?
I can only speak for my local lottery and they aren’t televised anymore because they don’t draw balls anymore. It’s all computer generated now.
Then the bookie...err...Powerball should publicly publish his name notifying him that he has LOST $340 million, and he is expected to bring them a check.
A mistake does not absolve you.
That seems trustworthy.
As long as I’m allowed to still write my numbers down, that’s fine. The moment they quit allowing us to fill out cards, I will be done.
I do admit that computerizing the balls does allow them to pick numbers in a combo that doesn’t allow the prize to be won, so I admit to being a bit suspicious on that point.
I believe they know where the winning ticket was sold...so it is traceable...to a point. I know one case where a store camera caught the “true buyer” on camera...
If you ‘win’ a jackpot at an Indian casino, they are telling the truth when they say it’s a computer error. The machines are programmed to not actually award the jackpots.
No mechanics involved with the slots any more. It’s all controlled by software.
If they published those numbers, they flat out owe it to him.
These SOBs deserve ZERO tolerance to say we were wrong, and here are real numbers.
If they can do that, they can cheat at will.
They were up on the website for three days as the winning number. Too bad for the lotto. Maybe they should learn their lesson.
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