Iowa Lottery jackpot scheme that saw man walk away from US$14.3M could have Canadian connection, investigators say...

ScreengrabSpecial Agent in Charge Patrick Townsend of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation confirmed his agency sought assistance from Canadian law enforcement early in the 18-month investigation into a withdrawn claim for a $14.3 million Hot Lotto jackpot

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Investigators seeking to unravel an attempted multimillion-dollar Iowa Lottery jackpot scheme have been in contact with Canadian authorities and are looking into people who may have been involved, an agent said Thursday.
Special Agent in Charge Patrick Townsend of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation confirmed his agency sought assistance from Canadian law enforcement early in the 18-month investigation into a withdrawn claim for a US$14.3-million Hot Lotto jackpot.
He said the case has taken a positive turn in recent months, and investigators are working leads that could provide answers in a mystery that has captured worldwide attention.
“We have people of interest that we are working on and looking into,” Townsend said, declining to elaborate on how many or to release their identities. “There are opportunities for us to follow up with and hopefully they take us down some roads that actually go somewhere.”
In December 2011, a 77-year-old New York lawyer Crawford Shaw waited until minutes before a one-year deadline to turn in a winning Hot Lotto ticket. Shaw signed the ticket on behalf of a newly created trust, claiming he was its sole trustee. The ticket was confirmed as valid.