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Lawyers drop request for author's lottery scandal book notesNews Story
Lawyers reversed course on Tuesday and dropped a subpoena in which they had ordered an Iowa journalist to turn over notes related to his book about a lottery industry insider who rigged jackpots in several states. The withdrawal of the subpoena for journalist Perry Beeman's notes came hours after The Associated Press reported that it had been issued and sought materials that were likely protected by Iowa's reporter privilege law. Beeman co-wrote a recent book, The $80 billion Gamble, with
Aug 28, 2019, 10:04 am - Todd - Lottery News

Lottery losers could get paid after lottery scam lawsuit settles for $4.3 millionNews Story
A class-action lawsuit to benefit potentially millions of owners of losing tickets linked to the largest lottery scam in U.S. history has been settled for $4.3 million, according to a statement sent by an attorney in the case. The settlement will refund the cost of tickets purchased in nine specific drawings dates for games sold in 33 states, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., between Nov. 23, 2005 and May 23, 2013. A settlement website will be set up to assist people who s
Jul 22, 2019, 6:43 pm - Todd - Lottery News

CT Lottery quiet as uncomfortable allegations pile upNews Story
For a moment it looked like some meaningful information might be released to the public this week about the latest upheaval at the Connecticut Lottery Corp. (CLC) this time in the form of an order Monday that lottery Vice President Chelsea Turner be placed on an indefinite leave, six days after disclosing in sworn testimony that she contacted the FBI in about 2014 with suspicions of wrongdoing by a superior. But it hasn't turned out that way. The CLC's board of directors scheduled a specia
Jul 19, 2019, 8:22 am - Todd - Lottery News

Court rejects Colorado man's claim to full $4.8M lottery jackpot he unwittingly split with scammersNews Story
Even though Amir Massihzadeh of Boulder, Colorado, was the only legitimate winner of a Colorado Lotto jackpot worth $4.8 million in 2005, he's not eligible to claim the full winnings, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled in a decision released Thursday. Massihzadeh, one of three ticket holders to win that jackpot, accepted his prize of $568,990, after taxes. But 10 years later, a criminal investigation exposed a scheme to rig lotteries across state lines, and officials determined the other two
Jun 21, 2019, 8:39 am - Todd - Lottery News

NM Lottery Pick 4 computerized drawing glitch made many tickets worthlessNews Story
Players can get a refund IF they held onto losing tickets By Todd Northrop When the New Mexico Lottery introduced its latest lottery draw game, Pick 4, in early February, players had no idea that many of the tickets they purchased were completely worthless with no chance of winning. That's because the game's computerized drawings were incorrectly programmed, making combinations with repeat digits impossible to be drawn. Only combinations in which every digit was different were able to b
Feb 21, 2019, 7:25 pm - Todd - Lottery News

Iowa lottery lawsuit granted class action, affecting 7.2 million tickets in 19 statesNews Story
By Jason Clayworth A judge has granted class-action status in a lawsuit that claims people who purchased at least 7.2 million lottery tickets in 19 states were scammed by a former national lottery IT director who worked in Iowa. Eddie Tipton, the former IT director for the Multi-State Lottery Association in Urbandale, added a secret code to random number-generating computer software in 2005 that allowed him to narrow the drawing's winning odds from as great as 5 million to 1 down to 200 to
Jan 28, 2019, 10:24 am - Todd - Lottery News

Did new Illinois Lottery private manager get too good of a deal?News Story
Hoping for better luck the second time around, state officials unveiled a deal Friday to put the fate of the Illinois Lottery in the hands of a British firm that pledges bigger returns than those generated under the manager the state fired. In a do-over of the nation's first, controversial attempt at state lottery privatization six years ago, Illinois agreed to a contract with the only firm to bid for the potentially lucrative job: the Camelot Group. It comes as the state and Camelot pledge t
Oct 21, 2017, 9:55 am - Todd - Lottery News

IT'S OFFICIAL: Tipton pleads guilty to rigging computerized lottery drawingsNews Story
The cyber security expert and brainpower behind a lottery rigging scandal that netted $2 million in illegal winnings from five state lotteries pleaded guilty Thursday to a felony charge of ongoing criminal conduct charge. For the first time in an Iowa courtroom, Eddie Tipton admitted to playing a central role in the rigging scheme after more than two years of adamant denials in the face of mounting evidence against him. Pursuant a plea agreement, Tipton, 54, now faces spending up to 25 yea
Jun 29, 2017, 10:52 am - Todd - Lottery News

FBI missed rigged jackpot in 2006 before lottery scheme grewNews Story
Investigators were suspicious in 2006 when they heard that a rural Texas judge was trying to exchange $450,000 in consecutively marked bills. But Tommy Tipton, a Fayette County magistrate, told the FBI that his actions were innocent, if odd: He won the Colorado lottery but couldn't tell his wife because gambling was against their Christian faith. The FBI accepted the story and dropped its inquiry of Tipton, who soon bought a new truck and more property around the town of Flatonia, 110 miles (
Jun 19, 2017, 8:51 am - Todd - Lottery News

Mastermind of lottery fraud will explain how he rigged jackpotsNews Story
Lottery Post's warning to the lottery industry about computerized drawings, issued more than a decade ago, is about to be confirmed as fact by Eddie Tipton, a former Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) security director. A lottery programmer will tell investigators how he was able to use his position to rig state jackpots for years and he and his brother will repay $3 million in prizes they improperly claimed, under a plea agreement released Monday. Prosecutors will seek a 25-year priso
Jun 12, 2017, 9:21 pm - Todd - Lottery News