Meer Patel, a 23-year-old of Indian origin, has been arrested and charged after attempting to steal a $1-million lottery ticket. Patel, who was employed as a clerk in a Tennessee store, is accused of stealing the winning ticket from a customer who had purchased it along with another ticket on July 13 at a Shell gas station in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
The customer, a father who chose to remain anonymous, gave Patel cash for the lesser-winning ticket and believed the other ticket was discarded. Patel, however, allegedly fished the winning ticket out of the trash and attempted to claim the prize. He even tried to claim the winnings at the Tennessee lottery office, but his attempt raised suspicion.
Investigators reviewed store surveillance footage, which showed Patel removing the ticket from the trash and later celebrating in the store after discovering it was a $1 million winner. The footage also helped detectives identify the true owner of the ticket, who was unaware of his good fortune until informed by investigators.
Patel has been charged with theft over $250,000, and the father has been notified of the incident, discovering that he had won a substantial prize he had not initially realized.
