July 26th 2024.
In Tennessee, there was an incident at a gas station that has sparked quite a bit of controversy. It seems that an employee by the name of Meet Patel has been accused of committing a pretty serious crime - stealing a winning $1 million scratch-off lottery ticket from a customer. And if that wasn't bad enough, he then tried to claim the cash prize for himself.
According to a report from CNN, Patel was taken into custody after a customer asked him to check two scratch-off tickets. After scanning the tickets, Patel discovered that both were winners. However, instead of informing the customer of their good fortune, he decided to keep the one with the $1 million prize. The winner had no idea that they had won such a large sum of money until detectives contacted them to inform them of Patel's deceitful actions. Patel is currently being held at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center on a charge of theft over $250,000.
The incident took place at a Shell gas station in Murfreesboro on July 13. The customer had scratched off the front of one of the tickets and asked Patel to scan both to see if they were winners. One ticket revealed a prize of $40, while the other revealed a whopping $1 million jackpot. However, instead of being honest and giving the ticket to the rightful owner, Patel was caught on surveillance video throwing the winning ticket in the garbage. Lt. Detective Steve Craig explained to News Channel 5 that the front bar code on the ticket would have indicated whether it was a winner or not, despite the amount being scratched off.
Patel went ahead and paid out the $40 winning ticket to the customer, but he left the $1 million prize ticket on top of the trash. The surveillance video shows him later retrieving the winning ticket and placing it in his pocket. As Det. Dennis Ward stated in a news release, Patel was then seen celebrating in the store after scratching off the front of the ticket and discovering that it was worth $1 million.
However, Patel's attempt to claim the cash prize was foiled when he went to the lottery commission. As per their standard procedure, officials checked the security video from where the tickets were purchased and discovered Patel's deceptive actions. "He went to the lottery commission to claim the ticket as his own, but there were red flags and they held onto the ticket," Lt. Detective Steve Craig explained.
The consequences of stealing a million-dollar ticket are not to be taken lightly. It is considered a Class A felony, and Patel's bond has been set at $100,000. He is scheduled to appear in court on July 30. This incident has caused quite a stir, especially in light of a recent story about a Powerball winner who was refused their $350 million prize due to a mistake on the lottery's website. Let's hope that justice is served in this case and that the rightful winner receives their well-deserved prize.
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