Getty Image / Jay L. Clandenin
Imagine all the things you’d do with the money from winning the Powerball. I’m sure it’s something you’ve thought of before, probably daydreaming at work in the middle of a particularly bad work week.
Now, imagine, thinking you’ve won the lottery, with the numbers on your ticket matching the numbers on the screen, only for that not to be the case.
That’s what happened to one man from Washington DC, and it’s a story that will make you never trust anything ever again.
John Cheeks said he felt “numb” when he first saw Powerball’s winning numbers matched his ticket in January 2023.
But when Mr Cheeks presented his ticket to the Office of Lottery and Gaming (OLG), his claim was denied.
“One of the claims agents told me my ticket was no good, just to throw it in the trash can,” he told the BBC.
Instead, Mr Cheeks held on to that ticket and found a lawyer.
He is now suing the lottery for damages, in the amount of the Powerball jackpot, plus the interest he would have earned on it per day – totalling $340m.
Wait, how did this happen? According to the article, Cheeks’s ticket matched the numbers on the official Powerball website in early January 2023. Those numbers stayed up for three days. Any sane person would believe they won the Powerball at that point.
But, that’s not what happened, technically. The company that runs much of the operations behind the scenes was doing quality assurance tests on the website. They claim that’s how the numbers were posted online. The actual winning numbers drawn were not his numbers.
I am not a lawyer, but it seems pretty clear that he did not actually win the lottery. On the other hand, he’s also suing for emotional distress, among other things. Leading someone to believe they have won the lottery for days, only for that not to be the case, could certainly cause emotional distress.
Who knows if Cheeks will get any money out of this. But, I think we can all agree that this would be a total nightmare.