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                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, February 29, 1992                   TAG: 9203020213
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-11   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

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ASK INVESTIGATION OF STATE LOTTERY

I WOULD never buy any chances on the Virginia Lottery if I knew one party could buy 7.2 million chances. I feel this was a real cover-up by lottery officials.

Several months ago, (lottery director) Kenneth Thorson wrote that the majority of the winning tickets were bought in Tidewater because this is where the majority of tickets are sold. Is it not peculiar that the Australian syndicate wired its money to a Tidewater bank and bought tickets at Tidewater locations? My map still shows Roanoke and other areas are closer to Australia than is Tidewater. We have banks in Roanoke that can handle electronic transactions.

I believe that all of us who feel concerned about this $27 million drawing and how our lottery officials handled certain information should call or write their state senator or delegate now. Ask for new lottery laws to keep our money inside Virginia, not inside Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee and Australia. Ask for a complete investigation. Ask for a housecleaning of our Lottery Department. ANTHONY T. ELLIS ROANOKE

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