The customer bought multiple tickets for “The Pick” lottery game, in which players must match six numbers on their tickets to the six numbers called, according to the complaint, per the outlets. Gawlitza reportedly printed $85 worth of tickets, but the customer only paid for $60 worth, leaving $25 worth of tickets on the counter.
The remaining tickets were left unattended in the store until the next morning, and the winning numbers were called. Gawlitza clocked out of work that same day and purchased the abandoned tickets from an employee, the lawsuit alleges, per the outlets.
Gawlitza’s attorney Josh Kolsrud claimed to ABC 15 that his client followed store policy, which requires employees to purchase any leftover lottery tickets, and he even contacted his supervisor, a district manager, to confirm he could purchase the tickets before buying them.
“So, if you accidentally print them out and they go unsold, it’s the industry practice for the person who prints them out to be responsible to pay for them. If not the person, then the store manager,” he told ABC 15, adding that another store employee even rang him up.