INDIANAPOLIS — A Vermillion County man found himself in a scenario that strikes fear in the heart of Lottery players everywhere. He threw away a $50,000 winning ticket. After a weird chain of events, Ernest “Ernie” Scott III of Clinton was able to discover his win, dig his ticket out of the trash, dry it out and collect his winnings at Hoosier Lottery Headquarters Tuesday. “When I looked at the ticket covered in coffee, I couldn’t help but tease Ernie,” said Hoosier Lottery Security Investigator Brian Morris. “I told him to find a better coaster.” Scott’s winning Lucky 5 “trash-can ticket” matched all five numbers in the Feb. 2 evening Lucky 5 drawing. The problem is that when Scott initially checked his ticket online he mistakenly thought it wasn’t a winner. “I don’t know what I did, or what I looked at, but for some reason I thought it was no good and I threw it away,” Scott said. This is where the story gets weird and where the line between good and bad luck blurs. The next day, a friend of Scott’s called to tell Scott that the numbers Scott plays in a different Hoosier Lottery game, Daily 3, had just been drawn. “My buddy called to tell me that my numbers 8-2-4 came up in Daily 3. He knows I play 8-2-4 in Daily 3,” said Scott. “But I hadn’t played that day.” Aggravated at his bad luck and annoyed that he hadn’t purchased a Daily 3 ticket for the one drawing when his numbers were finally drawn, Scott hopped online to check the Daily 3 numbers for himself to make sure his buddy wasn’t pulling his leg. He had no idea how serendipitous an endeavor this would prove to be. Scott was scanning the Hoosier Lottery homepage for the Daily 3 numbers when a different set of winning numbers for a different Hoosier Lottery game caught his eye. There, on the screen, listed as the winning Lucky 5 numbers for Feb. 2, were the five Lucky 5 numbers he had been playing for months: 5-7-14-18-28. He knew the numbers by heart because they are a combination of his wife and four children’s birthdates. He knew they were the numbers he’d played that day. He also knew he had thrown the ticket away. “He was sitting at the computer mumbling and mumbling. I couldn’t tell what he was saying,” said Scott’s wife Kathy. “Finally I saw what he was looking at and I said ‘Did you win the Lottery?’ and he said, “I threw the ticket away.’ ” The whole family scrambled to the kitchen to retrieve the ticket from the trash, which had thankfully not been taken out. The ticket was buried under coffee grounds. It was soggy and stained, but all information necessary to validate the ticket was intact and readable. The couple dried it out and presented it to Lottery officials Tuesday morning. The Scotts hope to use their “trash-can winnings” to build a garage and take their kids to Florida. As for the friend who’s phone call prompted the discovery of the win, the Scott’s say they plan to treat him to a steak dinner as a show of gratitude.
Local & Bistate
- Local & Bistate
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A fallen soldier returns home
An Army carry team moves a transfer case containing the remains of Spc. Arronn D. Fields early Thursday morning at Dover Air Force Base, Del.
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Official touts trade with northern neighbor
A top Canadian diplomat told a Terre Haute audience Thursday his country was “disappointed” when President Obama at least temporarily rejected a proposed transcontinental oil pipeline from Alberta to Texas.
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Caution urged for summer’s kickoff
Lane restrictions in construction zones on Interstate 70 and other highways around the state will be lifted to accommodate holiday travel for the Memorial Day Weekend.
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Letters delivered
Several positions will be eliminated this summer at the Terre Haute mail processing facility as the U.S. Postal Service begins moving the operation to Indianapolis, a U.S. Postal Service spokesman has confirmed.
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Companies seek Vigo tax abatements
Two Vigo County companies are seeking tax abatements for expansion projects, one of which is included as part of a county incentive package.
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High-speed chase suspect caught in West Virginia
The suspect in a cross-country, high-speed chase originating in Terre Haute last week was reportedly in federal custody Thursday evening.
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Second victim of deadly I-70 semi-trailer crash identified
The Vigo County Coroner’s Office has identified the passenger of a semi-tractor crash on May 16 in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 near the 12-mile marker.
- VIGO COUNTY JAIL LOG: May 22-24, 2012
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Burn ban in effect for Vigo County through holiday weekend
Vigo County officials have issued a burn ban effective Thursday and remains in effect until 8 a.m. Tuesday.
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Brazil remembers a Fallen Son
A small town seemed sadly quiet Wednesday, waiting to honor a local fallen warrior.
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ISU OKs four-year degree guarantee
Indiana State University has announced a four-year “graduation guarantee” for students enrolling this fall and beyond.
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Dems tout good side of compromise
Indiana Senate Minority Leader Vi Simpson, chosen to run as the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor with gubernatorial candidate John Gregg, said during a stop Wednesday in Terre Haute that bipartisan experience is a key factor in creating jobs and legislation to help Hoosiers statewide.
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Motorcyclist dies, motorist charged after accident
A Terre Haute man has died of injuries he sustained in a two-motorcycle, one-car crash that also injured another motorcyclist late Tuesday. The incident has led to the arrest of the car’s driver.
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Grant money will help replace Collett Park area tree canopy
A combination of city funds and a state grant is allowing TREES Inc. and the city of Terre Haute to plant 100 trees next year to replace a storm-destroyed street-tree canopy in the Collett Park neighborhood.
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Schools surpass goal for Riley
The lives of about 5,000 children in Vigo County are touched each year by Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, and now, the Riley Children’s Foundation has been touched with gratitude by students in the Vigo County School Corp.
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Historic preservation proposal discussed during open forum
More than three dozen people turned out Wednesday to ask questions about a proposed Terre Haute ordinance that would set up a formal process to preserve historic properties in the city.
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Banks of the Wabash workers getting festival ready to roll
Concession stands and amusement rides lined the lawn, waiting for a crowd.
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Search on for Gibault walkaway
The Indiana State Police are seeking help in finding a juvenile who they say walked away from a Vigo County treatment facility Sunday evening.
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Graduate college in four years? ISU ‘guarantees’ it
Indiana State University has announced a four-year graduation guarantee for students enrolling this fall and beyond.
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School bus crashes into central Indiana home
A school bus rumbled through the backyard of a suburban Indianapolis home and crashed into the side of the house.
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Markets swoon, oil prices fall as anxiety about Europe takes hold
The threat of a financial crisis spreading from Europe shook markets on Wednesday. The euro dropped to a nearly two-year low against the dollar. Oil prices sank to their lowest this year, and stocks took another fall.
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The closing of St. Ann Parish: Shuttered parish will help others live on
St. Ann Parish celebrated its last Mass on Sunday.
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Foreclosure lawsuit questions dog mayor
Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett said Tuesday he is “100 percent” certain the foreclosure suit filed against him by GMAC Mortgage on his eastside home will be resolved within the next “couple of weeks.”
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TB case cause for concern, not panic
A suspected case of tuberculosis at a Vigo County middle school is cause for concern, but health officials are taking appropriate precautionary steps, says Union Hospital’s chief medical officer
Dr. John Bolinger said the suspected TB case at Woodrow Wilson Middle School “is a concern,” but Vigo County and state health departments “are there to handle situations like this. They’ll do the right thing.” -
Woodgate residents considering legal action
Residents came in force Tuesday to try to compel the Vigo County Board of Commissioners to change how a development is progressing near Woodgate subdivisions in southern Vigo County.
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Clay County soldier dies in Afghanistan
A 27-year-old Knightsville resident and Northview High School graduate died Monday from a rocket propelled grenade attack in Afghanistan while serving with the Indiana National Guard.
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Farmersburg man arrested on rape charge
A Farmersburg man has been arrested on suspicion of rape and criminal confinement after a May 4 incident that allegedly occurred at his parents’ residence.
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Truck driver in double fatal crash identified
A truck driver killed in a crash on Interstate 70 in Vigo County last Wednesday has been identified as Alfonso Ochoa Diaz, 60, River Rouge, Mich.
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Two arrested on reckless driving charges
Indiana State Police on Tuesday nabbed two drivers accused of reckless driving in northern Vermillion County.
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Garfield Towers resident, injured in fire, dies
A man who sustained burns in the Garfield Towers fire has died at an Indianapolis hospital.
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