On 3-7-09 at about 1130 AM, a citizen of Santa Paula was approached by a Hispanic male in a silver Dodge van, who claimed to be from Mexico and that he had won $400,000 from the lottery. The male suspect stated that he needed $30,000 to “put in the lottery machine in Fillmore” in order to get the $400,000 that he had won. While talking to the male suspect another female suspect approached and engaged in the conversation between the male and the victim. The victim was convinced by the suspects to surrender the money she had with her and go to her bank to withdraw more money in order to secure part of the “winnings” for herself. The suspects drove the victim to her bank where she withdrew $3,000 from her account. The suspects then drove the victim to her house to get more money, but fled when they saw the victim’s daughter come out of the residence.

This is yet another case of a lottery scam in which victims are approached and convinced by suspects that they will be given a large amount of money in return for a smaller amount of money. The suspects in theses cases have been of Hispanic origin and usually the victims are older Hispanics, usually speaking Spanish. Please, do not fall victim to these criminals. The lottery does not operate in this manner. A winner does not have to present money to receive any winnings and it does not matter if the “winner” is a resident of the US. If you are approached by anyone saying they need money in order to claim money, they ARE scamming you. If you have any information regarding suspects in this or other lottery scam cases, you are encouraged to contact your local police department.