Employee blames whiskey and Tylenol PM for lottery ticket theft

A Florida man says he doesn't remember scratching nearly $7,000 worth of lottery tickets — blame it on the Tylenol PM and whiskey. That's the head-scratching excuse a store employee gave deputies after being caught allegedly scanning stacks of Florida Lottery scratch-offs and tossing them away like confetti. The plot thickened when surveillance video told a much clearer story than he did.

Blacked out?

A deputy from the Marion County Sheriff's Office recently responded to the Green Acres Store located in the 25300 block of SE Highway 42 near Umatilla, according to authorities. An investigation was initiated, which showed that 56-year-old Rajeev Saini allegedly scanned $6,900 worth of Florida Lottery scratch-off tickets and then discarded them.

Officers questioned Saini about the lottery ticket theft, but he stated he didn't remember doing it. Why is that?

Saini claims he took two Tylenol PM pills and two shots of whiskey and then blacked out. However, the in-store video surveillance captured the incident. He was placed under arrest and transported to jail. He was being held on a $5,000 bond, officials said.

Other recent arrests

This isn't the only lottery-related arrest recently. Some other recent arrests include:

• A pair of employees in Idaho scratched over $5,000 worth of Idaho Lottery tickets without paying for them.
• A fight between two Massachusetts men over a winning lottery ticket ended with a knife being pulled and both men being arrested for drug charges.
• A Michigan man pleaded guilty to using stolen credit card numbers to purchase over $7K worth of lottery tickets.

Some good news

It's not all bad news, though, as National Lottery Week took place last week across the country, and the Florida Lottery was celebrating its role in helping to create brighter futures for Florida students and families. The Florida Lottery has contributed over $48 billion to education since 1988. This includes the Bright Futures Scholarship Program, K-12 initiatives, and classroom enhancements.

For National Lottery Week, the state lottery highlighted the stories behind the numbers. They celebrated students, retailers, and winners whose lives have been transformed through purposeful play.

Some of the key milestones and achievements the Florida Lottery has seen since 1988 include:

• Over $48.9 billion has been transferred to education across all 67 counties in the state.
• For Fiscal Year 2024-2025, the Florida Lottery contributed $2.13 billion to education.
• The Bright Futures Scholarship Program has received over $9.2 billion in contributions. These contributions have helped over 1 million students to pursue postsecondary education in Florida.
• The state lottery supports more than 13,550 retailers, many of which are locally owned small businesses.
• The Florida Lottery has awarded billions in prizes annually, including over 100 new millionaires in the past year alone.
• They have also been able to generate jobs and economic activity through game sales, advertising, and retailer commissions.

As they look to the future, Florida Lottery Secretary John F. Davis said the lottery remains focused on innovation and growth to continue delivering meaningful impact for Florida's students and communities.

Enjoy playing the Florida Lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.