We dropped 1 million yen (approximately US$8,300) on 5,000 Japan National Lottery scratch-off tickets to see if buying in bulk translates to bigger wins.
lottery (Page 2)
Beginning on December 20, residents of Japan can participate in a special Pokémon-themed lottery campaign at participating stores throughout the country. Although the event is officially targeting young adult women, we don’t see how anyone could resist the cute goods that are just waiting to be snatched up!
What was that famous saying again? Oh yeah–“Gotta catch ’em all!”
July and August tend to be the seasons where summer festivals get kicked into full swing. Much like festivals in any country, the festivities are often accompanied by various stalls selling drinks and snacks. Other stalls can be found offering games that you know are probably rigged, but just can’t help trying.
For one such stall runner, 45-year-old Tsutomu Morikawa, poor price planning led to a date with the police.
Not too long ago, Mr. Sato was thumbing through a magazine when he came across an ad for something. On the page he could see a man sitting in a bath tub filled with cash. “Boy, he sure looks happy” Mr. Sato thought as he put down the magazine.
That image lingered in the back of his mind until the announcement of Loto 7’s biggest jackpot ever, 800 million yen (US$8.5M). Then it dawned on him. He could win the grand prize and realize his new dream of bathing in money.
“Winning the jackpot once should be no problem,” he thought to himself “but it’d be a little harder to win twice if I need that much to fill a tub.”
He had to be sure that 800 million yen was enough before he’d be foolish enough to play the lottery.
Working at a lottery counter or kiosk must be a drag. You have to watch other people win big and hand over cash everyday while probably making a less than stellar salary yourself.
So it comes as no surprise that one lotto shop employee in Sakai city succumbed to the temptation to pocket someone else’s big winning ticket for herself and telling them they lost.
For those of you who enjoy playing the lottery, here’s a story that should help put your odds of winning in perspective.
Last December, painter Shigeru Aikoh was arrested from robbing a Kushikatsu (deep fried snacks) restaurant in Settsu, Osaka. However, prefectural police later discovered he was a part of a four man group responsible for a year-long crime spree around the prefecture totaling 4.5 million yen (US$572,000).
However, much to Aikoh’s dismay a fair chunk of that loot had turned out to be totally worthless.
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