It was only a couple of weeks ago that people from across the country were devastated to find out they had lost the Powerball, however it may in fact be a blessing in disguise. Craigory Burch Jr. won the Georgia Lottery this past November. What may have seemed like a miracle, may have really been a target on his back.
Burch's girlfriend Jasmine Hendricks claims the lottery money definitely had something to do with this attack. According to CNN, "Ever since he hit the lottery, we kept getting calls and text messages saying 'be careful because people are out for him... to rob him."
What happened is nothing short of a nightmare for Burch and his family. His home was invaded on Thursday, January 21 by three masked men armed with guns. After blasting the door with a shotgun to disable the lock the men cornered Burch and yelled at him to give him his money. While being held at gunpoint he begged the men not shoot him in front of his family. Jasmine then ran to get help.
Burch offered up his wallet in exchange for his life and was almost successful in the trade. Once he was forced to removed his jeans and hand them over, there was no wallet to be found. Frustrated the men then proceeded to shoot him to death in front of his children. The police have not identified any suspects in the case.
What seems to be the most upsetting about this loss was Burch's character. His friends and family said that he spent some of his lottery money to buy Christmas presents for those in need.
This isn't a rare case when it comes to lottery winners. About 70 percent go into debt within seven years and there are countless stories about lottery winner being killed by strangers or loved ones, watching their loved ones get tortured, or even commit suicide. In fact, some think of the lottery as a "curse." The Author of "Money for Nothing: One Man's Journey Through the Dark Side of Lottery Millions," Edward Ugel, said "you would be blown away to see how many winners wish they'd never won."
Billie Bob Harrell Jr. from Texas committed suicide, after losing all $31 million from his lottery win. His last words were that "Winning the lottery is the worst thing that ever happened to me."
Perhaps, we should all count our blessings and thank the lucky stars that we in fact did not win the lottery this past month. After all, we'd be better at being thankful for what we already have, then pining greedily after millions we did not earn. Not to say -playing the lottery is a greedy game to play, only that it is dangerous- particularly if you let greed sweep you away.
Playing the lottery? Proceed with caution.
