Lotto a Rip-off for Illegal Immigrants

Independent Press Association, Russian Bazaar, News Report, Mikhail Sobolev, Translated from Russian by Lucy Gunderson., Posted: Jun 19, 2007

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – No one can say exactly how much money illegal immigrants spend on lottery tickets.

However, the owner of a small store in Bensonhurst admitted to me that the biggest fans of the New York Lottery are Mexicans.

“They earn next to nothing doing dirty work, yet they throw $20 to $30 a day to the wind,” he marveled. “Sometimes entire families play!”

Vendors rarely ask their lottery customers for ID. They couldn’t care less about a person’s age, legal status, or knowledge of English. This amounts to legalized fraud because illegal immigrants who win large sums of money (from $500 to $1,000 depending on the kind of lottery and the state) cannot claim their winnings. Lottery companies do not advertise this fact, and government officials turn a blind eye to it.

Ernan Blanko, an undocumented immigrant in North Carolina, played a local lottery game for six years. He bought two to three tickets a week, secretly hoping to win the multi-million dollar jackpot. One day Blanko had some modest success, winning $50,000. At the lottery office, he was asked right away exactly who the ticket holder was. When Blanko answered that he was, he was asked to present his Social Security card, a valid state ID, and proof of legal residency. Naturally, he did not have any of these documents, so he was denied his winnings on a legal basis.

Representatives of lottery companies ask about the ticket holder to rule out forgeries. If Blanko had thought about it, he could have asked a legal resident to claim his winnings for him. But it is too late for that now.

“I was deceived in the most brazen manner,” said Blanko with regret. “Nowhere on the ticket does it say that I have to be a legal resident. If the lottery is only for a select few, then that should be disclosed at points of sale.”

And really, why isn’t this rule disclosed? Isn’t that also a violation of the law?

Alvaro Toledo, an undocumented immigrant from California, knew perfectly well that he would not be able to claim his half-million dollars in winnings himself. He asked his friend, a legal resident, to do this for him, in exchange for an appropriate amount of money. But the lottery company, which was well aware that many of its clients were undocumented, decided to complete an additional review. The owner of the stand where the ticket was sold was asked to produce the video recording that showed Toledo purchasing the ill-fated ticket. There were no doubts that this was the winning ticket because almost all U.S. lotteries are computerized. This means that the exact place and time of sale can be established easily.

Interestingly, Toledo and his friend were not only denied his winnings, but were also accused of fraud. It is quite possible that Toledo will spend time behind bars.

It is generally accepted that the first lottery scam took place in 1985 when an undocumented Mexican won $2 million at a casino in Las Vegas. The potential millionaire was overjoyed until employees of the casino found out about his status. Reluctant to part with such a large amount of money, they called in immigration agents. Instead of the millions due to him, the Mexican received deportation orders.

This incident evoked outrage in the press. Human rights advocates fought hard for illegal immigrants to have the same rights as Americans to claim their winnings, but nothing came of it. Twenty-two years have passed, but no headway has been made.

There are many communities in the United States where the number of undocumented immigrants exceeds the number of legal residents.

“Every week I sell $1,500 to $2,000 worth of lottery tickets,” said Sandra Mackey, the owner of a small store in North Carolina. “Very few people who purchase these tickets are here legally. So far, the largest prize we have had is $150, but we will pay out up to $600 here, without asking for ID. If somebody wins more, they will have problems claiming the prize."

Last year in Atlantic City, I witnessed how one Russian tourist who was in the country legally was denied $7,300 in winnings. Events developed quickly. The tourist pulled the lever of a one-armed bandit [a slot machine]. Several seconds later, the winning combination appeared on her screen and the room erupted in applause. Less than a minute later, two casino workers approached this woman, one carrying a tray with neat stacks of cash and the other holding a tax declaration. Upon seeing the tourist visa in her passport, they asked her when she would leave the country and if she had a Social Security number. When they learned that she did not have a Social Security number, one of the workers politely informed her that, according to the rules of the casino, they could not give her the money.

U.S advertising publications frequently run ads that read: "I can help you claim your lottery winnings without any problems." These enterprising Americans offer their services to illegal immigrants for a fee amounting to 10 to 20 percent of the prize money. Naturally, there is no guarantee that they will not deceive the real ticket holder.

Incidentally, con artists have already managed to take advantage of this situation. The Internet, especially popular virtual auction sites, is brimming with ads like, “I won $10,000, but I can’t claim my winnings because I am not a legal resident. I will sell my ticket for $5,000.” This attractive offer is accompanied by a picture of the winning ticket. Fans of making easy money frequently fall for these offers. After paying for the ticket, they receive a hastily made forgery in the mail.

It should be noted that lottery companies in some states pay out winnings to illegal immigrants without any unnecessary questions.

"We have absolutely no interest in the legal status of the winner," said Louise Krist, spokesperson for the Texas Lottery. "As long as they have an ID, they can collect the amount due to them. We are not concerned with whether or not they pay their taxes. If the law allows them to play, the law must allow them to win."

Unfortunately, most states require a confirmation of legal residency.

Every day, almost 300 million lottery tickets are sold. This works out to a ratio of one ticket to every resident. Human rights advocates estimate that about 5 to 10 percent of these tickets are bought by undocumented immigrants. Along with senior citizens, this is the group that is most likely to gamble. But while a U.S citizen or a legal resident has at least a slight chance of winning the jackpot, illegal immigrants have no chance at all.

It’s absurd that winning $100, which can be claimed at the point of sale without any problem, is much more pleasant than winning hundreds of millions.

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