Thursday, September 6, 2018

Father, son, daughter sentenced in $12.5M lotto fraud

Three family members who won nearly $12.5 million on a lottery ticket they had duped from a customer at their variety store were sentenced. Jun-Chul Chung was sentenced to seven years in prison. His daughter, Kathleen Chung, received a four-year sentence, while son Kenneth Chung was sentenced to 10 months in jail. All three were found guilty of stealing lottery tickets from customers at Kenneth Chung’s variety store in Burlington, Ontario.
Vaughan mansion is one of two houses purchased with the $12.5-million winningsThe huge payoff came in the December 26, 2003, Super 7 draw. The winning ticket came from a "free play" which the Chung's stole from one of their customers, something they did on a regular basis. The Chungs used the winnings to finance a lavish lifestyle, purchasing homes and expensive vehicles. The Chungs weren’t caught until 2010, when they were found out in an investigation of “insider” jackpot wins. The lottery tracked down the rightful owners of the winning ticket and paid them nearly $15 million, to account for interest.
The lottery agency launched a civil lawsuit against the Chungs in an attempt to recover the money, and changed its rules to prevent similar frauds by forcing retailers to return lottery tickets to their owners after validating them.

A lawyer representing the family said Jun-Chul Chung is appealing his conviction and will be out of custody on bail pending it's outcome.