Whew! Roomies, how far would you go for money? It looks like a Tennessee store clerk was willing to take it to criminal levels over a winning lottery ticket. Now, Meet Patel is out of a job and up with the criminal justice department!
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Store Clerk Steals Lottery Ticket
A man became a millionaire last week, thanks to authorities who informed him of his lottery win. CNN reports that the lottery winner learned of his $1 million jackpot when police told him his ticket was stolen.
The Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office said the incident began when the man bought two $20 Diamond and Gold lottery tickets at a Shell gas station in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. PEOPLE reported that the customer had the 23-year-old clerk check if the scratched lottery tickets were winners.
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Detective Steve Craig told WTVF that you only need to scratch off the bar code to check to see if you’ve won.
“If you scratch off the front bar code, it will tell you if it’s a winner or not, regardless of whether you scratch off everything showing how much you won,” Craig explained.
CNN revealed that one of the man’s tickets had a $40 prize, while the other was worth $1 million. Authorities said footage showed the Tennessee store clerk first throwing the $1 million ticket in the trash and then pocketing it later.
“Mr. Patel is then seen later in the video celebrating in the store after scratching off the front of the ticket and learning it was a $1 million winner,” Detective Dennis Ward said in the news release.
What’s Next For The Meet Patel?
Per CNN, prizes over $200,000 must be claimed at the Tennessee Lottery’s Nashville office. However, Meet Patel’s attempt to claim the prize raised suspicion.
“He went to the Tennessee Lottery Commission to claim the ticket as his own and through their normal line of questioning there were enough red flags for them to say, ‘Hey, you need to get all of your affairs in order and come back to us and we’re gonna hold on to the ticket,” Detective Craig told WTVF.
As reported by CNN, Meet Patel is being detained at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center on a theft charge exceeding $250,000. His bond is currently $100,000, and his hearing is set for July 30.
