Tennessee Gas Station Clerk Caught Stealing $1 Million-Winning Lottery Ticket on Camera

Meet Patel was allegedly caught on surveillance footage stealing a winning lottery ticket.

A gas station clerk in Tennessee has been accused of stealing a customer's $1 million-winning lottery ticket after falsely claiming it was a losing ticket. Surveillance footage allegedly captured the incident.

The unidentified winner had purchased two $20 Diamond and Gold scratch-off tickets from 23-year-old Meet Patel at a Shell station in Murfreesboro. According to the Rutherford County Sheriff's Department, the winner handed the tickets back to Patel to verify. Patel reportedly returned one ticket with a $40 prize but claimed the other ticket was a loser, despite it being worth $1 million, Lt. Detective Steve Craig told News Channel 5.

“He threw it on top of the trash,” Craig said of Patel, who then “took the trash outside” as the winner left. “If you follow him on the camera, you can see him grab the ticket and put it in his pocket.” Patel later attempted to claim the ticket as his own at the Tennessee Lottery commission, Craig said.

Patel's attempt was thwarted when the commission's routine questioning raised enough red flags to prompt an investigation. Surveillance footage made it “pretty obvious” what Patel had done, Craig told the outlet, confidently stating it would be sufficient evidence for a jury.

The rightful winner, a father from Antioch, Tennessee, will now receive his $1 million jackpot. Patel is being held in the Rutherford County Jail on a $100,000 bond, accused of stealing the winnings, a Class A felony.