Lakeville store clerk accused of trying to cash $3M lottery ticket customer left behind
LAKEVILLE - A Lakeville liquor store clerk is accused of trying to cash in a winning lottery ticket worth $3 million after a customer left it behind.
The Plymouth County District Attorney says 23-year-old Carly Nunes of Lakeville went to Massachusetts State Lottery headquarters to collect the money on the Mega Millions quick pick ticket.
Investigators say on January 17, the victim, who was not identified, purchased a bag of chips, two Mega Millions quick picks, and two tickets for the Mass Cash lottery at Lakeville Liquors & Market, which was formerly Savas Liquors. The man added a multiplier to his Mega Millions tickets to increase the jackpot prize. He left the store with just the bag of chips, leaving the tickets in the lottery tray. After leaving the store, the man searched for the tickets but assumed he lost them.
Prosecutors said another customer purchased lottery tickets about 45 minutes after the victim left. The customer received the two extra tickets that were purchased by the victim, and gave them back to Nunes, who rang up the transaction.
Two days later, 32-year-old Joseph Reddem, a co-worker at the store, drove Nunes and her boyfriend to the lottery headquarters in Dorchester.
Lottery officials became suspicious when the winning ticket was torn and burned, and surveillance video captured Nunes and Reddem arguing over money. "Reddem allegedly made demands of the jackpot and Nunes informed Reddem that she would 'only pay him $200,000,'" prosecutors said.
Nunes told Massachusetts Lottery investigators that she purchased the ticket toward the end of her shift, and it burned when she accidentally put it on a pipe. Surveillance video from the store confirmed the ticket was purchased by the victim. Nunes later admitted that she did not purchase the ticket herself.
Lottery officials say it took a month, but they tracked down the rightful winner by posting flyers in the Lakeville area. The Lottery intends to honor the victim's claim on the $3 million prize.
Nunes is charged with larceny from a building, attempted larceny, presentation of a false claim, and witness intimidation. Reddem is charged with attempted extortion.