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Dec 03, 2023

DA: Clerk at Massachusetts liquor store tried to cash $3M lottery ticket left behind by customer

A 23-year-old liquor store clerk was indicted Friday on charges that she schemed

A 23-year-old liquor store clerk was indicted Friday on charges that she schemed to steal a winning $3 million Mega Millions ticket and cash it in at Massachusetts Lottery Headquarters, prosecutors said.

Carly Nunes, of Lakeville, was indicted by a Plymouth grand jury on charges of larceny from a building, attempted larceny, presentation of a false claim, and witness intimidation, according to Plymouth District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz.

Nunes’ indictment comes after a four-month investigation that involved a thorough review of records, video surveillance footage, and witness interviews, Cruz's office said.

On Jan. 17, 2023, the victim in this case is said to have entered Savas Liquors at Bedford Street in Lakeville and purchased a bag of barbecue potato chips, two Massachusetts State Lottery Quick Picks for the Mega Millions lottery, and two for the Mass Cash lottery. The man added a multiplier to his Mega Millions ticket to increase the jackpot prize.

Nunes, the checkout counter clerk, input the order into the lottery terminal, and printed two lottery tickets. Nunes returned to the cash register and rang up the man's order, totaling $12.

Prosecutors say the victim left the store with his bag of chips, but left all of his lottery tickets behind at the checkcounter. That same evening, the victim's identical numbers were announced as winners in the Mega Millions drawing. The victim then briefly searched for his tickets to check his numbers but concluded that they were lost.

Two days later, a co-worker at Savas, 32-year-old Manchester, New Hampshire, native Joseph Reddem, drove Nunes and her boyfriend to Massachusetts Lottery Headquarters in Dorchester to redeem the prize, according to prosecutors.

Reddem was also indicted on a charge of attempted extortion in connection with Nunes’ scheme.

When Nunes presented the winning ticket at Lottery headquarters, a customer service worker noticed that it was torn and burned, but proceeded to scan it and inform Nunes and her boyfriend that it was indeed worth $3 million. Prosecutors say the couple proceeded to "embrace" and "celebrate."

Shortly after cashing the ticket, prosecutors say Nunes and Reddem were caught on surveillance video arguing in the lobby of Lottery Headquarters. An investigation revealed that Nunes allegedly told Reddem that she would "only pay him $200,000″ from the winnings.

The argument that was overheard coupled with the condition of the ticket that was turned in, led Lottery officials to interview Nunes, according to prosecutors.

Nunes allegedly claimed that she purchased the ticket near the end of her shift on Jan. 17, that she mistakenly ripped the ticket when removing it from her purse, and that the burn marks were from placing it on a pipe.

Lottery officials ultimately told Nunes that they were going to contact Massachusetts State Police to launch an investigation and that she would receive her winnings when a conclusion was made.

A review of surveillance video from inside Savas revealed that the ticket wasn't purchased by Nunes. When confronted with this evidence, she allegedly said that she had "inadvertently obtained the winning ticket."

State police eventually tracked down the victim for an interview and lottery officials said they plan to honor the victim's claim to the jackpot.

Nunes and Reddem will be arraigned at a later date.

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