OHIO — A disappointed gambler reached out to News 5 after he faced an issue with his $2 "I’m Lucky and I Gnome It" Ohio Lottery scratch-off ticket, thinking he had won $5,000 based on the numbers he read on the ticket.
We reached out to the Ohio Lottery Commission about the problem ticket, and the organization emailed us back, saying they received a complaint in late October that the numbers on the ticket were difficult to read clearly, so they decided it was best to reprint the tickets with a cleaner font.
“I feel like I’ve been tricked,” said James Lester.
Lester told News 5 he spent a lot of time and money gambling.
“I can show you my Ohio Lottery app,” Lester said. “There’s never been a time where I thought I hit, and I didn’t hit.”
But after one bad experience, Lester said he won’t gamble again.
“I quit playing Ohio Lottery as of that day. Quit playing. Will not play Ohio Lottery again,” Lester said.
This all comes after Lester said he purchased the $2 "I’m Lucky and I Gnome It" scratch-off ticket about two weeks ago and thought he won $5,000 once he saw the winning numbers.
“I scanned it, and it said loser and I’m like, 'Oh no. My phone is tripping,'” Lester said.
Not wasting any time, Lester said he returned to the lottery store, where he purchased the ticket to plead his case.
“I asked the gentleman, the regional manager down there, and I’m like, ‘Sir, can you please tell me what this number is?'" Lester explained.
After not getting much luck, Lester said he then reached out to the Ohio Lottery Commission and eventually to News 5 in hopes of getting answers.
“I’ve questioned it so far; I came to the news channel and that’s bad,” Lester said.
Once News 5 emailed the Ohio Lottery Commission, they responded by saying:
“The Ohio Lottery Commission received a complaint in late October that the numbers on the ticket were difficult to read clearly, so we decided it was best to reprint with a font that was cleaner. tickets were reprinted, and sales reps are working to remove the old tickets from the field, but if the previously printed version was still sold it was still a valid ticket and would be paid if it were a winning ticket.”
“I want them to print stuff and make sure it’s a plain as day for somebody,” said Lester. “It’s just not fair.”
The Ohio Lottery Commission advises any player who has a question about whether their ticket is a winner to scan the barcode or send it in to be reviewed by their claims office.
