Phew! Roommates, how far would you go for money? It seems that one Tennessee store clerk was willing to take it to criminal levels for the sake of a winning lottery ticket. Now, Meet Patel is unemployed and is going to work for the criminal justice department!
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Shop assistant 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 the $1 million prize when police told him his ticket had been stolen.
The Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office said the incident began when the man purchased two $20 Diamond and Gold lottery tickets at a Shell gas station in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. PEOPLE reported that the customer asked the 23-year-old clerk to verify that the scratched-off lottery tickets were winners.
Detective Steve Craig said What do you think? that you just need to scratch the barcode to check if you won.
“If you scratch off the barcode on the front, it will tell you whether you are a winner or not, regardless of whether you scratch off everything that shows 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 later seen in the video celebrating in the store after scratching off the front of the ticket and discovering it was a $1 million winner,” Detective Dennis Ward said in the news release.
What’s next for Meet Patel?
According to CNN, prizes over $200,000 must be claimed at the Tennessee Lottery office in Nashville. However, Meet Patel’s attempt to claim the prize has raised eyebrows.
“He went to the Tennessee Lottery Commission to claim the ticket as his own, and during the normal questioning, there were enough red flags that they said, ‘Hey, you need to get all your affairs in order and come back to us, and we’ll keep the ticket,'” Detective Craig told WTVF.
As reported by CNN, Meet Patel is being held at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center on charges of theft over $250,000. His bail is currently set at $100,000, and his hearing is scheduled for July 30.
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What do you think, roommates?