A woman in Austin thought her life was changed forever when she won an $83 million jackpot from the Texas Lottery.
We already know how hard it is to win the lottery, but this woman's path to securing life-changing money has been made even more difficult thanks to the involvement of the Texas Rangers.
The woman purchased the winning ticket through a courier at the Winners Corner, a hobby store, in North Austin. Lottery couriers have garnered intense scrutiny from Governor Abbott, and the State Lottery Commission has pushed for the banning of courier services.
The woman has been using courier services to play the lottery for the past six years, only winning big now. Her lawyer, Randy Howry, told KVUE, "It's the person you want to win the Texas Lottery. It's that person who takes a risk, likes to gamble and wins the lottery. And instead of being rewarded for that, she's being punished."
Officials are citing another lottery win being investigated from 2023, where a group of people who bought $26 million worth of tickets in every combination and won a $95 million jackpot.
Howry said his client's case is different by comparison.
"A night and day difference," he said. "My client is a regular person who plays the lottery, occasionally, and spent $20 on the night of this particular lottery and got lucky and got the winning ticket."
Howry said they are going to give the lottery commission time to resolve the situation but are ready to take legal action if necessary.
The Texas Lottery Commission released the following statement stating, "The holder of the Feb. 17 Lotto Texas jackpot-winning ticket has come forward. The claim is being reviewed under the Commission's claim validation requirements and is the subject of external investigation."
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