The Arizona Lottery marked its 40th Anniversary earlier this year. And 2022 has already seen a parade of big winners.
In the past week, there have been 358 lottery winners netting prizes of at least $600.
Included is one ticket played in Phoenix that may send someone into a new tax bracket. Those are the highs.
However, with those highs also come the lows. And one resident has found themselves in some hot water over their Arizona Lottery play.
Lows: Lottery winner indicted for false claim to $191,000
One woman’s Arizona Lottery win could fit into the “Too good to be true” category. Now she has been indicted for falsely claiming $191,100.
The Arizona Attorney General’s Office says the State Grand Jury charged 50-year-old Barbara Kay White of Casa Grande, Arizona, with theft, fraud and perjury. Prosecutors allege that White tried to steal $191,100 from the Arizona Lottery. White is accused of lying to lottery officials when she tried to collect her winnings in June 2020.
The kicker to all this is that she allegedly didn’t tell the Arizona Lottery that she worked at the gas station where she bought the ticket.
This is something she would have been obligated to do under Arizona’s lottery rules.
When asked if she worked for a retailer, White allegedly checked “No” on the forms she turned in to collect the winnings.
White was arraigned in Maricopa County Superior Court Thursday. She is set to be back in court on April 21.
Highs: $1 million winning ticket sold in Phoenix
On the other end of the spectrum, the state’s newest millionaire resides in Phoenix. Arizona Lottery officials say a lottery player recently bought a Powerball ticket worth $1 million.
The winner matched five numbers. However, they fell short of hitting the jackpot by missing the Powerball number.
The winning numbers from Saturday’s drawing are 8, 23, 37, 52, 63, with Powerball number 13. Whoever the winner is, has 180 days from Saturday to come forward.
Winning tickets worth $600 or more must be claimed at the Phoenix or Tucson Lottery offices.
Players must be at least 21 years old to play or redeem lottery games.
So in those cases, you need to bring your original ticket plus a government-issued ID that includes your photograph.
Also, you’ll need to put your Social Security number on the Arizona Lottery Winner Claim Form.
