News writer
Winning the lottery usually comes with a big dose of luck. But according to South Carolina investigators, one Dorchester County man tried to skip the luck — and the law.
Authorities say he cashed in more than 20 stolen scratch-off tickets at three different convenience stores in a short span. He may have pocketed only small payouts, but they quickly led to bigger legal trouble.
Man cashes in stolen lottery tickets
Between November 29, 2024, and December 2, 2024, Dejerrion Lytrell Armstrong, 30, tried to cash in 21 stolen South Carolina Lottery instant scratch-off tickets at three separate locations, according to the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division. Authorities say the tickets were allegedly stolen during two previous gas station burglaries.
First, Armstrong went to the Carter Fast Stop, located on Highway 78 in Ridgeville, and turned in nine stolen scratch-off tickets. From those tickets, he received a payout of $53. Investigators state the tickets were previously stolen during a break-in at Ehrhardt Speed Stop in Bamberg County.
Armstrong then headed to Enmarket, located on Robertson Boulevard in Colleton County, on December 2 and turned in eight tickets, which were allegedly stolen during a break-in at County Corner, located on Highway 61 in Ridgeville. For those eight tickets, Armstrong received a payout of $40.
The suspect made his final stop at the Circle C Express, located on Ace Basin Parkway in Colleton County. He cashed in four more tickets, which were also allegedly stolen during a break-in at County Corner in Ridgeville. For these four stolen tickets, he received a payout of $55.
An arrest was made
Investigators from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division were able to link Armstrong to the break-ins and the stolen lottery tickets.
On April 6, 2025, he was charged with intent to defraud, counterfeit game tickets, officials said. Then on April 23, he was charged with two additional counts of intent to defraud, counterfeit game tickets.
Armstrong was booked into the Dorchester County Detention Center on April 6. He was then moved to the Colleton County Detention Center on April 23, authorities said.
The case is being prosecuted by the 14th Circuit Solicitor's Office, but his next court date was not released.
No jokes here
While Armstrong was allegedly stealing lottery tickets and cashing them in for small wins, another South Carolina man tried his luck at some instant tickets and wasn't a winner.
However, he entered his losing ticket into the Royal Millions Second-Chance Promotion and was notified this week that he won $1 million in the drawing. He thought the notification was a joke at first, but he called lottery officials and confirmed the good news.
Both he and his wife were hesitant about the big win and waited until they were given the check for $1 million at lottery headquarters to celebrate. The man told lottery officials:
It's unbelievable. It's more money than I have ever seen in my life.
The Columbia man's ticket was selected from more than 1.3 million entries. Players are allowed to enter their winning and non-winning Royal Millions scratch-offs for a chance to win $1 million.
Enjoy playing the South Carolina Lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.
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