TL/DR –
John Cheeks is suing the Powerball lottery after administrators denied his claim of a $340m jackpot, citing that his winning numbers were listed on their website due to an error. In his defense, it was revealed that the lottery’s game contractor, Taoti Enterprises, had accidentally posted test numbers on the Powerball website during a time zone testing session, which happened to match Cheeks’ ticket. Cheeks’ attorney, Richard Evans, argues that there is precedent for such a situation, citing a case where the Iowa Lottery paid out prizes to temporary winners due to a “human reporting error”.
Man Sues $340m Powerball over Mistaken Winning Number Announcement
A man who initially believed he won a $340m Powerball jackpot is suing the lottery after he was told his winning combination was displayed erroneously on their website. Washington DC resident John Cheeks purchased the disputed Powerball ticket on 6 January 2023 and saw his numbers on the DC lottery website two days later.
Comprising of family birthdates and significant personal numbers, Cheeks told NBC Washington he was excited but reserved upon seeing his numbers. However, when he went to claim the prize at the lottery office, his claim was denied. Court records indicate that the lottery officials said the ticket did not validate as a winner based on their gaming system.
Cheeks also alleged a claims staffer told him to throw away his ticket, but he kept it in a safe deposit box, sought legal help, and sued Powerball. Other defendants in his lawsuit include the Multi-State Lottery Association and game contractor Taoti Enterprises.
In court, Taoti project manager Brittany Bailey explained that the company was conducting a testing task on 6 January 2023 that accidentally led to test numbers being posted on the live Powerball website. Bailey stated the displayed numbers were not drawn for the actual Powerball drawing; they were also not the winning numbers since they were posted a day before the draw.
On 8 January, the incorrect lottery numbers were displayed alongside the actual winning numbers, only to be removed upon realization of the error on 9 January, according to Bailey. Despite Taoti’s declaration, Cheeks’s attorney Richard Evans told NBC Washington that he is yet to see proof supporting this claim.
Evans cites a precedent where the Iowa Lottery paid winners who had the wrong Powerball numbers due to a “human reporting error.” He argued that a similar mistake might have happened in this case. Powerball is a $2-ticket lottery game played across 45 states, DC, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands, with slim odds of winning the jackpot at one in 292.2m.
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