A North Carolina woman may have her lottery prize stripped away because of a potential fraud act committed by her husband. He has since been arrested and is facing accusations of illegally obtaining the lottery ticket from his place of work. Authorities believe the man may have used fraud to gain the ticket and then turned it over to his wife.
He has been charged with larceny by employee and the possession of stolen goods worth over $100,000. His wife claimed the $1 million lottery prize, but after she presented the winning ticket, an investigation was initiated after a tip-off from the man’s employer. Authorities allege their investigation showed the man gained the ticket while employed at the Kangaroo Express.
Details concerning how the man may have unlawfully gained the ticket have not been revealed. Although the investigation is ongoing, no charges have been filed against the wife. The lottery is now attempting to recover the prize money from the woman, but she has already received a $408,003 check from her portion of the winnings, after choosing to take a lump-sum payout over a 20-year annuity.
This man is accused of potentially using fraud to unlawfully gain the ticket, but from reports there are no specific details surrounding the reasons why the man was actually charged. Fortunately he will have the opportunity to defend himself against these charges in a North Carolina court of law. Should the man be proven innocent, his wife may be allowed to keep the lottery winnings.
Source: StarNewsOnline.com, “Husband charged with illegally obtaining $1M ticket,” July 11, 2012
