Lottery News and Stories
Another lottery scam incident surfaces in Elgin
Sunday, May 07, 2006 posted 03:05 AM EDT
A 56-year-old Elgin man lost $15,000 Wednesday to two con men in what has become known as “the winning lottery ticket scam.”
Two men approached the victim and told him that they held a winning lottery ticket for $350,000. However, they were unable
to collect the money because neither was a legal U.S. resident.
One of them could collect the winnings, they said, if he had two witnesses and $25,000. One man would get the jackpot, one
would put up $10,000 and if the victim put up $15,000, they could split the $350,000.
The two con men drove the victim to his bank on the 200 block of South Randall Road, and he withdrew $15,000 from his savings
account.
But the payoff will never come.
The two then drove the victim to the post office and told him to buy some stamps.
While he was inside, the two drove off, leaving the victim minus his $15,000.
Elgin police say the scam has cost Elgin residents, particularly elderly Latinos, hundreds of thousands of dollars in the
past five years.
Elgin police Lt. Cecil Smith and Lt. Mike Turner have said victims should report the incident to a bank clerk when they go
inside to withdraw their money.
That’s because the offenders seldom go inside the bank where they might be caught on a surveillance camera.
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