Grand Prairie store clerk accused of stealing $1 million lottery ticket from customer

07:57 AM CDT on Wednesday, October 21, 2009

From WFAA-TV

Authorities are looking for a Grand Prairie convenience store clerk who is accused of stealing a winning lottery ticket worth $1 million from a customer.

Pankaj Joshi is accused of lying to a 67-year-old customer and telling him that he won $2. Joshi is accused of then taking the winning ticket and cashing it in at lottery headquarters in Austin.

According to an indictment from Travis County, the customer, who apparently plays the same numbers all the time, had a winning Megaplier million dollar ticket. The clerk, who worked at the Lucky Food Store at 902 S. Great Southwest Parkway, told the customer it was worth $2.

After taking the cash option, Joshi transferred $750,000 to several different bank accounts. He then told his co-workers he had to help his cousin run a perfume store in Nepal.

Fellow employees sensed something was wrong because Joshi never played the lottery. They reported him to the lottery commission.

Lottery officials have recovered more than $200,000 from Joshi's bank accounts. U.S. Marshals are working with authorities abroad to locate him.

It was unclear whether the original winner will ever receive the $1 million prize.

Source & Comments:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/102109dnmetlottery.23a506efe.html

I don't think so.. StupidA does not have much to worry about.

It cannot be too hard for the cops to figure out his contacts/family in Nepal. They must have tons of documentation in the University International Office and Immigration. But the half a million dollar question is whether they will be able to find him at his home waiting to be apprehended and extradiated. If you ask me how I came to half a million dollar question, rather than usual one million dollare question, follow the math:

Total Winning = 1,000,000

Tax Withheld = 250,000

Total Recovered = 250,000 approx

Remaining = half a million.

 

Someone should raise funds in the community to compensate for the Genetleman who lost the money :-)

 

There are few pankaj Joshi  when I google which one is it ?? Picture plzzzzz

Where the hell is his pic

I think he is the same person who created a thread in sajha in which he mentioned about winning a lottery ticket of $1m. He did not mention about stealing thing in his thread. I think he was concerned about whether he could collect money because he worked in the same store where the lottery ticket was sold. Later he declared that he cashed the lottery ticket. We now know what the deal was. Titra ko mukh bairi. Badmasi gare pachhi mukh nakholnu ni.

I thought this post below.

http://sajha.com/sajha/html/OpenThread.cfm?forum=2&ThreadID=66685

But looks like this is not the one since this was in Dec 2008 and the fraud this thread talks about is of may 2009.

I'm not supporting anybody stealing money or anything from work. But I was wondering, how did the owner knew exactly which customer that winning ticket belong too. According to news links, the employer was the one who suspected that Pankaj stole  67 year old's ticket. However, there was no camera or any evidence whatsoever that this was the right guy to whom the winning ticket was sold. Is it just like another balloon kid hoax? Is the owner and this guy are creating a scam to divide the money. Don't get me wrong. I'm just emphasizing that anyone can cook up stories when it is a million dollar deal in USA. What evidence does US Marshalls have that the ticket was sold to this 67 years old? Any lead?

Instinct007: I think you have not read the whole story. Mr. Joshi seems never to play lotto and all of a sudden he won. The poor victim actually plays the same set of numbers each time and his numbers had won in the past. So I don't think you need rocket science to suspect this low life.

my prediction: Pankaj Joshi is gone forever. He will NOT be brought to justice.

For the individuals who know about the whereabouts and family members of the suspect, there is tremendous financial and moral opportunity if you can make a deal with the victim and law enforcement.

Remember, Eminem sang "Opportunity comes once in a lifetime, you never let it go". Make the best of it.

Mr. Hyde,

support Punkaj Joshi. If a man cannot protect his lotto ticket.. then
he should stop playing.... Punkaj is young, surely he can enjoy that
money better than that 67 year old man.


Regarding Nepali asshole did this.. do not point to nepalese community....

In
Toronto and other cities of Canada.. "whites" and "yellows" and all
sort of people selling/ working in lotto centres are exactly doing
this type of thing.... many got away scotfree... some got caught.. and
it seems even the Lotto Authorities personnels themsleves are also involved
in some kind of scandals of stealing/rigging the prizes.....

Now in Canada, I heard they
installed a device in each Lotto Centre, where one can go and scan
his/her own ticket to see if the ticket is a winner... no more to hand
over to the lotto centre agent for checking... so the lottoecentre agent can not steal the ticket from the winner!!

Why the hell you
can't check the numbers on TV or paper or website.. why the hell you
want to go to lotto centre to figure out all the time?

Punkaj... if you
have fled to Nepal or India or wherever... no one can bring you back to
USA and tried.  Have fun.. money is like that... MAD MONEY.

If
Obama can get Nobel Prize for doing NOTHING.. which should have actually be
given to someone else.. he simply stole it... he could have rejected it..
nope.. free prize.. why not.. he simply stole it... Where is the US Marshalls>?????

There is a very little difference between Obama and Punkaj's cases. In Obama's case... it appears legal or whatever fug it is... but in Punkaj's case the US lotto law happened to be written against Punkaj... imagine 100 years ago, such law was non-existent !!

NEWSFLASH VED555 

The chances of the US government arresting him is very slim, he could be anywhere. If nothing else, if you have the right conscious and want to do the right thing, you can always contact your local Maoist/YCL leader. Let them kidnap and extort his family, we'll see how he feel about that. Maybe the rumor has already spread in Nepal, they might have already done it. Who knows what happens in Nepal these days.He will come out of the hiding, only that way, just like in a Hindi movie scene....he'll be doing the slow motion running towards his mother saying "Maaaaaaa" .

Even he fled to Nepal , he will be brought to TX for justice?

his ass will get in trouble sooner or later

ved55,

r u stupid, or do u think all the people in sajha are stupid??? it must be one or the other. come on yaar..if you wanna defend pankaj dont come up with all those bullshit arguement..how can you relate obama getting nobel with pankaj frauding the state. duhh..grow up..

If a man cannot protect his lotto ticket.. then he should stop playing..meaning if u can't cook u are not supposed eat?? if you cant drive u can take a ride..is that what it is?? how can a man protect against fraud...like the news says he's been going to that store for years..he still buys ticket there..that means customer loyalty.

Why the hell you can't check the numbers on TV or paper or website.. why the hell you
want to go to lotto centre to figure out all the time? ---> thats non of your f**king business...can someone force you not write this thread on computer rather write it in paper and mail it to sajha's mail address. duhh..grow up

Punkaj... if you have fled to Nepal or India or wherever... no one can bring you back to
USA and tried...that means you dont know nth about it..so u better shut ur shit hole mouth.

If Obama can get Nobel Prize for doing NOTHING.. which should have actually be given to someone else.. he simply stole it... he could have rejected it.. nope.. free prize.. why not.. he simply stole it... Where is the US Marshalls>?????...no comment on this...prooves u r such an asshole..find out difference on stealing and accepting..

i m not telling what pankaj did was wrong or rite?? its up to him and the state of texas..but what he did is unethical

hora bhanya? khai k pattaune k. mysansar ko bhanai beglai cha, aaru samachar ko bhanai beglai. aba k ho tathya kura tyo ta Joshi le nai janos. sayad uh lapata bhayeko le sankha badeko po ta haina? aaris garne manche haru dherai huncha Nepali yo uh bhannu nai pardaina, jo pani aarish garchan. garne le fasauna khojeko pani ta huna sakla. tara khai jasto karma gareko cha tyestai faaal pawos. chor ho bhane sajaya, haina ho bhane kei na kei.

what fugging ethics you guys are talking....? Portfolio managers in wall street are swindling money.. and they are running scotfree.. and punkaj gets 20 years.. you're fuggng right???

what's the tension here?/ becasue punkaj is orginally from Nepal... that's why you nepalese guys are chickening out? that now you will be discriminated by your white masters??? what kinds life you guys are living? always fearing..????

i just read it in msn and knew it would definitely be on sajha by now..people are fast

Pankaj will eventually get caught his friends and relative are being questioned according to what i have found out no worry guys.