How can players protect themselves from Lottery ticket theft?
The simplest way for players to protect their interests is to sign the back of the ticket at the time of purchase. Anytime the Lottery is presented with a ticket that appears to be altered in any way, we conduct an immediate investigation prior to paying the claim. In fact in 2004, we were successful in locating the owner of a $100,000 winning ticket which was stolen by a retailer, who was convicted of the crime. In that case, the player had signed the back of the ticket, but his signature was scratched through by the parties attempting to claim it. This triggered an internal investigation which led us to the player and payment of his prize.
