Hong Kong man refuses to even-split $3.95m winning lottery ticket with colleagues

• Hong Kong man who holds a winning lottery ticket for an office syndicate has been arrested
• The man refused to even-split the $3.95m prize after he demanded more money for himself, and his colleagues refused
• He has deposited the money into a fixed bank deposit and has not shared it out as a probe into his actions is ongoing

Hong Kong authorities are looking into a man who reportedly stole a $3.95m winning lottery ticket from his colleagues. The man, identified only by his surname Ling, and who previously worked at the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, reportedly had a fallout with his colleagues.

Hong Kong man refuses to pay out colleagues an even-split lottery prize

Ling allegedly had a falling out with his colleagues, which resulted in the man deciding to claim the prize from the Hong Kong Jockey Club on his own, leaving his colleagues on the hook. The man reportedly transferred the money to a fixed bank deposit and has refused to disburse it.

Ling, according to the local media outletSing Tao Headline, handed in his resignation immediately after finding out he had won, and then cut off all communication with his colleague.

He eventually contacted them and said he wanted to retain $1.27m of the total prize, arguing that it was his numbers that had won the prize. He would have normally been entitled to a much smaller $220,000 payout under even-split rules.

Ling’s co-workers refused the offer and demanded that they be paid under the terms of the original lottery ticket purchase. After Ling refused, his colleagues turned to the police for assistance, fearing that he might not repay them.

Suspect arrested, and legal precedent exists

Withholding winnings bought together with others, however, could leave people who commit such offenses liable in court. A 2007 case involving a much smaller prize amount, around $4,840, saw a man refuse to split the prize with a friend and ended up serving six months behind bars over the dispute.

A separate story from the South China Morning Post corroborated other details about the case, with the man supposedly 36 years old and supposed to split the prize with 13 colleagues. The man was arrested on Friday, September 11, and remains in custody as of the time of reporting, according to available sources.

Image credit: Unsplash.com