American sues lottery firm over $340m win declared as mistake

A Washington DC man, John Cheeks, has filed a lawsuit against Powerball and the DC Lottery.

Cheeks had earlier thought he won a jackpot worth $340m (£270m), before Powerball and the DC Lottery, said they posted Cheeks numbers by mistake.

Powerball is an American lottery game offered by 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

In January 2023, Cheeks saw Powerball’s winning numbers corresponded with his ticket. However, showing his ticket to the Office of Lottery and Gaming, Cheeks disclosed his claim was rejected and he is now suing the lottery for damages accumulating to the Powerball jackpot, the interest he would have earned on it per day summing $340m.

He said, “One of the claims agents told me my ticket was no good, just to throw it in the trash can.”

Cheeks is now suing on eight separate counts, among which are breach of contract, negligence, infliction of emotional distress, and fraud.

According to court documents, Powerball and a lottery contractor, the DC-based Taoti Enterprises, claim the confusion arose from a technical error.

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In a court filing, a Taoti employee said that on 6 January 2023 – the day Mr Cheeks bought his ticket – a quality assurance team was running tests on the website.

On that day, a set of test Powerball numbers, which matched Mr Cheeks’ numbers – was posted on the website “accidentally”, according to court documents. Those numbers remained online for three days, until 9 January, adding that the numbers online did not match the numbers that were drawn at the last lottery draw.

“This lawsuit raises critical questions about the integrity and accountability of lottery operations and the safeguards – or lack thereof – against the type of errors that Powerball and the DC Lottery contend occurred in this case,” Cheeks’ lawyer, Richard Evans, told the BBC.

He believes the winning numbers corresponded to Cheeks’ numbers and was privileged to the “entire jackpot,” adding that “this is not merely about numbers on a website; it’s about the reliability of institutions that promise life-changing opportunities, while heavily profiting in the process.”

While speaking, Cheeks expressed confidence in the law system, saying, “I know the justice system will prevail.”

The case is therefore scheduled for hearing on February 23.