There could be several reasons that would provide such motivation. Whatever it may be there has to be a reason that outweighs public exposure. Public exposure must in some way expose them to losing something of value that to them is of greater value than $16.5 million. In the case of the current Iowa lottery ticket holder I of course have no idea what that would be so by today’s blog I do not wish to cast any dispersions upon that person or persons. But many people are asking themselves how anyone could give up this large amount of money; what motivates them? So I thought it would be fun to day to venture into lottery cases where there has been more downside than upside.

Freedom – Remember the police sting in the City of Chicago that occurred in the early 2000’s? They did it again in September 2011. The Chicago Police Department ran a sting where they promised $500 gift coupons, plasma televisions and video games that they had supposedly won. Or course each prize winner had an outstanding warrant and was immediately arrested after identifying themselves as the supposed winner. Prize giveaway turns out to be a bust, Ronnie Reese, Chicago Tribune. Over 100 “winners” were arrested. In the case of Lotto winnings there could be a similar motivation not to step forward.

Stolen tickets are void – A winning lottery ticket if stolen will be voided by the Iowa Lottery Commission. So if a person comes into possession of the winning lottery ticket by means of theft, they would win nothing by stepping forward. In fact if by stepping into the limelight the person’s identity would provide evidence of theft leading to a criminal complaint being filed clearly they would be motivated to not come forward to claim the prize. This problem isn’t as unusual as one might think. Here are stories in the news about cashing in and it leading to criminal charges being filed. Police say Lake Wales woman tried to cash in stolen lottery ticket, Gregg Burrage, Tampa Florida and read Stolen Lottery Ticket, Kristi Nelson, KXAS where a Texas convenience store clerk allegedly stole a ticket worth $1 million from a customer and then cashing it in. Here is another case in Newport News, Holbrook New York and right here in Emmetsburg, Iowa.  The case in Emmetsburg is reported to have lead to charges of lottery fraud, money laundering, ongoing criminal conduct and theft. Let’s face it the lottery doesn’t encourage productive behavior, like saving money, it teaches taking a chance.

Asset Disclosure – There are many situations requiring a person to completely disclose their assets and a winning lottery ticket would be considered in most situations a valuable asset; especially one worth over $10 million. Let's look at two of those situations. 

Bankruptcy - We are in a terrible economy and many people have filed for bankruptcy. When you file for bankruptcy protection from your creditors you are required to disclose all your assets and turn most of them over to the control of the trustee. If you don’t make a full disclosure, if it appears you are hiding some of your valuable assets it’s a crime and your bankruptcy petition can be dismissed. We recently had several news stories about an alleged dismissal here in Iowa. Developer Kline appeals bankruptcy dismissal and Business Record: Kline Bankruptcy Dismissed, KCCI. This type of factual situation would provide motivation to not step into the limelight.

Divorce - Probably one of the most well known cases comes to us from California. This case started as a quick divorce and ended several years later with the winning wife losing the entire winnings to her then ex-husband. Ex-Wife Loses Big in This Game of Chance, Ann O’Neill, Los Angeles Times describes a $1.3 million winner who lost it all to her now ex-husband. If a person had filed for divorce and had not disclosed they had the winning lottery ticket there would be motivation to not step forward, because there would be no benefit, assuming your ex sees you and investigates. In California, like many states, if you hide assets in a divorce you lose the entire asset your spouse.

Already rich enough – The saying goes you can’t be too good looking, be too thin or have too much money. But to some people money isn’t everything and they value privacy more than public recognition. This is what I refer to as ‘Who is Chuck Feeney?’

Mental Health Condition – Agoraphobia is a condition defined as having a morbid fear of having a panic attack and it is triggered, inter alia, by uncontrolled situations. Those who suffer from this condition avoid public and/or unfamiliar places.

CONCLUSION

As you can see there are numerous reasons a person might be motivated to forego what appears to be a winning situation; which when laid bare turns a winner into a loser. So before we can make assumptions about what’s going on in Iowa, we first have to know the facts about how they came into possession of what is a validated ticket.