Woman steals credit cards, buys winning lottery ticket, gets arrested, police say

A 33-year-old woman hit it big in the lottery, but ended up on the losing end whenthe Royal Newfoundland Constabulary charged her with theft of a credit card used to purchase the winning ticket.

The woman was arrested when she tried to claim the winnings at Atlantic Lottery's office in St. John's. She now facestwo counts of possessing a stolen credit cardand five counts of fraud.

When contacted by CBC News, astore owner in Paradise confirmed the Super Crossword scratch ticket was purchased at his shop, but declined an interview.Heconfirmed the prizewas$50,000.

It all started last Wednesday, when police were called by a man who said his wallet was stolen.

His credit cards were used to make several purchases at stores inParadise,including a lottery ticket thatpolice saidwon "a large amount of money."

Police saidthe woman did notreceive the money in fact, an eyewitness to the arrest says shenever made it close to the lottery officebefore four police cars surrounded thevehicle she was in.

Who gets paid?

There have been plenty of suggestions on social media that the winnings should go to the man who was allegedly defrauded.

However, Atlantic Lottery says it's impossible for someone to reap the rewards of somebody else's illegal exploits.

"Without commenting further on this specific situation, we do advise that Atlantic Lottery only pays prizes for lawfully acquired tickets," said spokesperson Natalie Belliveau."We have a robust process in place with a series of checks and balances to ensure this."

If it goes unpaid, the $50,000 will instead go into the corporation's unclaimed prize account, whichgoes towardfuture jackpots.

In the process of making the arrest, the RNC stopped the vehicle in which the woman was a passenger. The driver, a 46-year-old woman, was ticketed for driving with a suspended licenceand without insurance.

Police impounded the vehicle, released both women on promises to appear in court,and left themwaiting on the curbside for a taxi.

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