DC man takes Powerball to court over $340M mistake

A man who sued Powerball and the DC Lottery for their website error that showed he had the winning numbers, making him believe he would receive $340 million last year, will head for a court hearing this week.

John Cheeks, a 60-year-old from Washington DC, believed he had won the Powerball jackpot in January 2023, only to be denied the prize under claims that Powerball and the DC Lottery mistakenly published his numbers.

Cheeks is suing for the entire jackpot amount, plus damages, alleging breach of contract, negligence, emotional distress and fraud. His lawyer argues that since the winning numbers matched Cheeks’ ticket, he is entitled to the entire jackpot or compensation for the lottery’s negligence.

Cheeks’s ticket remains in a safe deposit box.