Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Some of the same people who sell North Carolina Education Lottery tickets are also winning – and winning big – 100-thousand, 300-thousand, almost 500-thousand dollar prizes.
And some are winning significant jackpots repeatedly – dozens of times a year.
Is it just dumb luck? Or do these insiders have some kind of inside track? And what is the state doing about it?
A regular lottery player first brought the pattern of retailers winning the lottery to the attention of the NewsChannel 36 I-Team. Since then the I-team has pored over thousands of records of lottery winnings in spreadsheets obtained from the lottery under the Open Records Act. Some winners clearly stand out.
Brenda Pope lives near Salisbury, NC and plays the lottery every week. She closely watches the list of winners updated daily online. “I noticed that the same names seemed to be popping up all the time,” Ms. Pope says.
Some retailers – the same people selling the lottery tickets – are winning multiple jackpots. “It’s kind of like being struck by lightning five, six, seven times,” she says.
One case in point – the B&S Variety store – a small convenience market located just off Interstate 40 near Morganton, NC. The owner of the store – Becky Ozmun – won a dozen jackpots in about 13 months – including a $10,000 payout and a $150,000 prize.
“There’s no secret,” Ms. Ozmun says from behind the counter, “I just scratch ‘em off.” Ms. Ozmun says it’s just luck. When asked if it’s fair for owners to play the game, she replies, “My money’s as good as anybody else’s.” She flatly denies owners have any advantage over any other player.
It’s perfectly legal for retailers like Becky Ozmun to play the lottery in North Carolina and every other state in the U.S. which collectively rake in billions in the name of education. And she’s hardly the only store owner who sells tickets who has won big jackpots. Since January of 2008 – when the NC Lottery began asking winners to declare whether they were retailers or employed by retailers – at least 462 retailers have told the state they won jackpots over $600 each. At least 70 won more than once according to state records.
