A winning lottery ticket is worthless if there is no redemption for the prize money.
A burglar from Auburn entered JoJo’s Refresh Shop, a local convenience store, to steal scratch-off lottery tickets, two packs of Camel Crush cigarettes and $50 in cash. The value of the stolen lottery tickets totaled $1,930.
The suspect realized his criminal earnings could be stretched further when he discovered that he stole the $100 winning ticket. Even if it came to his hands in an unethical way, he still sought out a plan to cash the ticket.
Meanwhile, the store workers were working with the cops to identify the suspect. An employee who closed JoJo’s the night of the burglary told cops that a regular customer had come in and stayed longer than usual, making her suspicious. This patron asked the employee what would happen if she sold him a lottery ticket without first scanning it and it wound up a winner.
JoJo’s owner called 911 again to say she and an employee had seen the suspect walking near the store. The man had visited another Auburn store and tried cashing in a $100-winning lottery ticket but was unsuccessful in redeeming it as the staff told him there was a technical problem with their system.
Police tracked down their suspect, who was identified as 40-year-old Daniel C. Stellmacher II and paid a house visit. When questioned about the ticket he tried redeeming, Stellmacher said he had found it on the ground. He insisted he had not been the one who burglarized JoJo’s, saying he was sleeping at the time.
Troopers obtained a search warrant and executed it at Stellmacher’s home. They found a ticket matching one of those stolen from JoJo’s, as well as a wheelchair covered in the residue from scratching off lottery tickets. He was arrested and released later on a personal recognizance bond.
Cash is the way to go for burglaries — stealing lottery tickets may be a complicated encounter with little reward.