Texas woman confesses to stealing $1 million lottery prize from her cousin

A Texas woman confessed to stealing her cousin’s lottery prize.

The victim lost a $1 million prize.

Iris Amador Argueta faces serious consequences for the theft.

A Texas woman pleaded guilty stealing a winning New York state lottery prize, which her cousin had won in 2020. According to the authorities, Iris Amador Argueta confessed and explained what really happened to the money.

Now, she will be sentenced after a three-year investigation resulting in her guilty plea. The woman’s cousin will now receive some of the money that she stole form him.

IRIS AMADOR ARGUETA PLEADS GUILTY

Photo: Twitter

Iris Amador Argueta, a Texas woman, pleaded guilty to second-degree grand theft after stealing a winning lottery prize. According to ABC 7 Chicago , the woman will be sentenced in the coming weeks.

Nassau County District Attorney, Anne T. Donnelly, issued a press release regarding Argueta’s crime and what happened to the $1 million winning ticket that she stole from her cousin in New York. The 34-year-old could spend one to three years in prison.

How did Argueta steal her cousin’s money?

Photo: Twitter

The official statement from the Nassau County prosecutor revealed that the Argueta pleaded guilty to stealing the $1 million lottery prize. At the time, the woman claimed the $500,000 lump sum payout and lied to her cousin about how much the ticket was worth.

“A Texas woman pleaded guilty today to stealing a $1 million winning “scratch-off” ticket from her cousin and claiming more than $500,000 in a lump-sum payout in November 2020,” the Nassau County DA’s statement says. The case has been active for two years, since the woman was arrested and forfeited the remaining prize.

Didn’t she think about the consequences?

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According to ABC 7, Iris Amador Argueta’s cousin asked her to claim the prize for him because he wanted to remain anonymous. She initially gave her cousin paperwork, she claimed was from the New York state lottery indicating the prize amount was only $20,000. The cousin became suspicious when he saw a press release saying Argueta had claimed $500,000.

“This defendant thought she hit the jackpot when she passed off her cousin’s $1 million winning ‘scratch-off’ ticket as her own and claimed a lump sum payout of more than $500,000,” DA Donnelly said in the statement. «But her greedy actions also spelled the end of her luck, and she will now serve prison time for her crime,» was detailed.

What happened to the money?

Photo: Twitter

In 2020 Iris Amador Argueta posed as the winner of a $1,000,000 New York state lottery ticket. She requested a lump sum payment of $500,000, without considering the consequences of her actions. Now, most of the money has been given to the rightful winner.

«When the collaborative effort between the Glen Cove Detective Division and the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office proved the victim’s allegations to be true, the defendant was arrested, and a majority of the $537,440 lump sum prize money was located and returned to the victim,» Detective John Nagle said in it press release. » The worst part of the crime was the fact that it was perpetrated by the victim’s own cousin.» Filed Under: Texas Woman stole lottery prize