DNA test to determine Thailand lottery jackpot winner

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thailand-lottery-jackpot-dnaOwnership of a disputed Thailand lottery jackpot could come down to the results of a DNA test.

In November, the Thai lottery issued a THB 30m (US $920k) jackpot prize to Charoon Wimon, a retired policeman. However, this award was quickly challenged by Preecha Kraikruan, a 50-year-old teacher, who claimed he’d lost the five first-prize lottery tickets that had won the twice-monthly draw.

Wimon’s winnings had already been deposited into his bank account, but with ownership of the jackpot under challenge, Wimon’s winnings have been frozen. The retired cop wasn’t pleased by this development, and his lawyer has accused a Royal Thai Police officer of attempting to pressure Wimon into sharing his winnings with Kraikruan to close the case.

Police have now determined that the best way to resolve the dispute is to subject the winning tickets to forensic investigation. This will include an examination of any finger prints found on the tickets, as well as determining whether Kraikruan’s DNA is present on the tickets. The results of these tests are expected to be available sometime in January.

Depending on how the results come in, one of the principals in our story could face criminal charges. There are four other cases of disputed lottery jackpots currently under police investigation and officials have suggested some of these cases may be connected.

Government Lottery Office (GLO) products are the only permissible form of gambling available to Thai citizens. The lottery products are currently limited to pre-printed numeric tickets but the GLO has been mulling the introduction of new products, including player-selected number draws and the country’s first rollover jackpots.