In October 2019, Edward Putman, a convicted rapist, was convicted of fraudulently claiming a $3.2 million lottery jackpot with a fake ticket from 2009.
Although ordered to repay nearly $1.2 million within three months, Putman has held onto much of his illicit winnings.
After only paying back $120,000 of the total sum within a year, Putman's home near the M25 was seized by authorities. However, this proved to be a fortuitous turn of events for the fraudster.
The house, valued at $889,000 was sold at auction for a remarkable $1,5 million, largely due to the valuable land that accompanied the property.
Fake $3.2M lottery winner could earn over $400K even when being in jail
According to the calculations, after Putman settles his current debts, he could potentially be left with a colossal $450,000 in disposable income. This windfall comes as a result of the lucrative sale of the seized property.
James Ashworth of Landwood Property Auctions commented on the sale's surprising success, noting the property exceeded expectations with high bidding competition.
"The property exceeded our expectations with more than one bid per second. The competition generated was fantastic, and it will be interesting to see what the buyer does with it," he said.
While one might assume that Putman would be forced to leave this newfound wealth, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has indicated that the situation is not so straightforward.
CPS will review asset sales for surplus, and seek increased orders until full criminal benefit is repaid.
The CPS explained that in cases where there is a surplus following the sale of assets, they will review the confiscation order and, where appropriate, apply to increase the order until the full criminal benefit has been repaid.
During Putman's sentencing, Judge Philip Grey called the crime a sophisticated and carefully planned fraud. He said Putman would have succeeded but was greedy, damaging the National Lottery's integrity and public trust.
The original winning ticket, purchased at a Worcester Co-op branch on 11 March 2009, was never claimed.
The ticket had the winning numbers 6, 9,20, 21, and 34, which would have awarded the rightful owner a life-changing jackpot.
Previously, a man dubbed the biggest lottery scammer in America after defrauding winnings 5 times.
Eddie Tipton was an employee of the organization responsible for the lottery draws in the US.
He created a secret computer code that allowed him to manipulate the selection of winning numbers. Using this code, Tipton was able to defraud lottery winnings on at least 5 separate occasions, stealing millions of dollars.
Tipton's scam was first uncovered in 2010 when he was caught on CCTV purchasing a $16.5 million jackpot ticket. The prize went unclaimed for nearly a year, raising suspicions.
Authorities later discovered that Tipton had tried to claim the money through an anonymous offshore group in Belize, but was denied due to state lottery regulations.
Further investigations revealed that Tipton had successfully rigged the lottery system and won the jackpot on another occasion.
His brother in Colorado had also won a significant prize a decade earlier, suggesting the scam had been ongoing.
In 2015, Tipton was found guilty of fraud charges and sentenced to 10 years in prison. However, he was released early in 2022 for good behavior but faced a temporary parole revocation for an undisclosed reason.
