Oklahoma Casino Not Paying Jackpot
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) - Next time your friend or significant other asks if they can give it a try at a slot machine that you’ve supplied money for, think again — they could end up leaving with your $100,000 jackpot.
Gambler Jan Flato put $50 in a slot machine at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Fort Lauderdale, hoping for a chance to win $100,000
At one point, Flato let his friend, 35-year-old Marina Navarro, push the button for luck.
Then, suddenly, lights flashed and the pay line showed that he had won the $100,000 jackpot… or so he thought.
Casino Winnings Are Not Tax-Free. Casino winnings count as gambling income and gambling income is always taxed at the federal level. That includes cash from slot machines, poker tournaments. The casino’s not trying to get out of paying. Your best bet is to go grab a meal at the casino’s restaurant and start calling banks to find a good rate on a CD. If you’re a big winner, you’re incredibly lucky. That depends on the slot machine, of course, but all of them pay out on a relatively infrequent basis. Picture courtesy of Maribel Sanchez NEWCASTLE, Okla. (KOKH) - An Oklahoma woman gambling at the Newcastle Casino Friday morning claims she hit the jackpot for nearly $8.5 million, but she said. Oklahoma woman claims slot machine shut off after she hit the jackpot and the casino won't pay her the nearly $8.5 million she says she won. A Maryland woman said she thought she was leaving the casino Friday thousands of dollars richer after hitting the jackpot on the slot machine — but a typo by the casino staff left her with.
Once managers of the casino analyzed the video, it showed that Navarro pushed the button, which made her the rightful winner of the jackpot.
Seminole spokesman Gary Bitner couldn’t say much, but did reiterate the rule when it comes to gambling: “The person who pushes a slot machine button or pulls the arm is the person who wins the jackpot.”
Not only did Flato lose the cash he put into the machine, but he has barely heard from Navarro since she walked out that night with the jackpot. That night, she even asked armed security to keep an eye on Flato as she walked out.
“I said, ‘Marina, what are you doing?’ and she gets up and walks out,” Flato said.
Weeks later, she allegedly sent Flato a text message asking, “Still hate me?” He responded, “How could you do that to me?” And her response? “I miss you.”
Flato said he is still furious about what happened. But now, he has an important message for other slot players: “Don’t ever let them touch the button, don’t even tell them to touch anything for luck, because they can do what Marina did to me,” Flato said.
Navarro said Flato became distressed when they found out the jackpot wasn’t his. “Jan all of a sudden went ballistic,” she said. “He started screaming in front of everybody.”
Navarro then said Flato sent her threatening text messages. One message read, “Having me as an enemy ….not good,” followed by “We’ll [see] who made the Big mistake. It won’t be me.”
Navarro said she offered Flato some of the winnings, but after the texts he sent, she rescinded the offer.
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