Not up to scratch: ex-convicts ‘used stolen card for £4m lottery win’
TWO National Lottery winners could be denied a £4million prize amid suspicions that they bought their winning scratchcard with a stolen bank card.
Mark Goodram, 36, and Jon-ross Watson, 31, purchased the scratchcard for £10 at Waitrose in Clapham, south London, on Easter Monday.
But when the jubilant pair, who both have multiple criminal convictions and had only recently been released from jail, contacted Camelot to claim the top prize, their story rang alarm bells.
They reportedly admitted that neither of them had a bank account, despite buying the scratchcard with a debit card.
When asked whose bank card had been used, they named a mystery friend called “John” but were unable to provide his surname, address or phone number, saying only that he had disappeared “up North”, it is understood.
Their cash prize is being held back while Camelot investigates.
City of London police said that anything purchased with a stolen card would be deemed “unlawful ownership” because it was obtained by means of a criminal act and could therefore be confiscated or seized.
However, the two men, both from Bolton and unemployed, have still been celebrating with vigour, posing for photographs with cocktails, magnums of champagne and fistfuls of £50 notes – it is not clear where the money came from.
Mr Goodram, who is said to have 22 convictions for a number of criminal offences, told The Sun: “I’m off to see the Queen. This is brilliant. I deserved a bit of a break. We’re made for life. I can’t wait to spend the lot. I’m going to buy luxury properties and look after myself.”
Mr Watson, who is believed to have been in prison as recently as seven weeks ago, said: “I’m off on a Caribbean cruise, then to Las Vegas. But I need a passport first. Mark and me have been mates since we were little. This win’s unbelievable but we deserve money fair and square. We were screaming in the street. “We’ve told family and friends about our win but no one believes us.” The pair initially told the newspaper that they had bought the scratchcard with their last loose change but later changed their story to suggest they had given the cash to an unnamed friend who bought it with his debit card. They said they had no knowledge of a stolen debit card being used for the scratchcard. The National Lottery operator declined to comment on the case due to strict policies about winner anonymity.
However, it said security procedures form a key part of the process of validating any winning ticket and that, if there were any doubts about a claim, it would launch an investigation.
A Camelot spokesman said: “Our focus is on the validity of a claim. We are not a law enforcement agency and it’s not our responsibility to investigate where someone’s money came from.
“But if it emerges that there is anything fraudulent or suspicious about a claim, it will be subject to an investigation and could be passed to the police before we make any decisions about a payout.” She confirmed that there had
‘This win’s unbelievable but we deserve money fair and square’
been previous occasions in which Camelot had not paid out because of fraudulent claims, which had been passed to police.
In February, a 33-year-old woman who allegedly used a stolen credit card to buy a winning lottery ticket in Canada was arrested on her way to collect the £29,000 prize and was instead charged with fraud.