Man Wanted for Extortion in Stolen $3M Lottery Ticket Case

Police in Massachusetts are now searching for a man, suspected of being involved in a lottery fraud case. The incident involves a couple of convenience store workers and dates back to January last year. On January 17, 2023, a visitor of the convenience store purchased lottery tickets and potato chips. However, upon leaving the venue, the man forgot one of the tickets. Surprisingly, the same lottery ticket he forgot was one that was winning a whopping $3 million.

One of the workers at the convenience store that sold the lottery ticket collected the winning ticket that was left behind. Once realizing that the ticket won $3 million, the worker, a woman aged 24, identified with the initials C.N., attempted to redeem the multi-million-dollar prize, as announced by MassLive.

The 24-year-old arrived at the Massachusetts State Lottery headquarters together with her boyfriend and another worker of the convenience store identified with the initials J.R. After the young woman submitted a claim to redeem the prize, CCTV recorded her arguing with her co-worker in the lobby of the Lottery headquarters. Some lottery officials even heard the 24-year-old tell her co-worker that she would only “pay him $200,000.”

Upon examining the ticket, lottery officials uncovered that it was burned. Additionally, they found tears on the ticket as well. Considering the condition of the ticket, together with the argument that was heard by the officials, the lottery decided to launch an investigation and informed the 24-year-old that she would receive the prize once the probe is completed.

Warrant Issued for the Arrest of a Man Suspected of Being Involved

To help with the investigation, the Massachusetts State Lottery asked the Massachusetts State Police for assistance. The latter launched an investigation into the case and helped identify the real winner of the $3 million lottery prize.

As noted, the winner was a man who had purchased the winning ticket but forgot it on site. In light of this, the real winner of the ticket was tracked down and he collected his prize last summer.

However, the two convenience store workers found themselves in trouble considering their involvement in the case. Earlier this year, in February, the 24-year-old woman was sentenced to two years of probation due to her involvement in the lottery fraud case.

However, her co-worker remains at large which is why a Plymouth County Superior Court judge issued a warrant for his arrest. The man, who is being tracked by law enforcement currently, faces a charge related to extortion regarding the case. Although his pre-trial hearing was set to start May 13, the man did not appear in court which is why a warrant for his arrest was issued.