Talk about good luck turning to bad.
A South Carolina woman won $500 through a lucky scratch-off lottery ticket last month, only to share the good news with some friends and have one of them allegedly steal it from her.
She reported the lost ticket to the lottery commission, which yielded results when two people attempted to redeem the ticket the next day. Sheriff's deputies tracked down the original thief via the couple, who were identified through a security camera.
Sheriff's deputies proceeded to arrest 28-year-old Willie Jones. Officers confirmed to The Huffington Post that he has been charged with lottery fraud and was released Wednesday afternoon on $5,000 bond.
And as for the woman, the stolen ticket will be investigated and she's expected to receive all $500.
She told Channel 9 she plans to keep playing the lottery, but next time she wins, she won't tell anyone about it.
It's just the latest case involving winning lottery tickets that go missing. In North Carolina last week, a convenience store clerk was charged with stealing a $1 million lottery ticket which his wife proceeded to cash in. After lottery officials paid out the winnings, the man's employer tipped them off, leading to his arrest, reports the Daily Mail.
And in Georgia, a man sued his employer in March of this year over a $750,000 lottery ticket, claiming he was taken advantage of as an undocumented immigrant. The man says his employer had promised to cash the ticket and return the money, but instead attempted to keep it. The winnings in that case have been frozen while the investigation is ongoing.
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