Monday, June 19, 2006

St. Paul Pioneer Press | 06/16/2006 | Pull-tab seller accused of unfair play

St. Paul Pioneer Press | 06/16/2006 | Pull-tab seller accused of unfair play: "Pull-tab seller accused of unfair play
Prosecutors say employee illegally won $1,500 on the job
BY ALEX FRIEDRICH
Pioneer Press
A Moorhead, Minn., woman who sold pull-tabs at a Withrow bar and restaurant has been accused of fraudulently winning more than $1,500 last year while on the job.
Prosecutors say Judith Rae Hanson, 57, who ran the game for the Bayport American Legion at Sal's Angus Grill, illegally won nine prizes from July through October and registered the winnings under the names of others. She faces gross misdemeanor charges of illegal playing and gambling fraud.
Hanson left the Legion in October. She said Thursday she has not seen the charges and declined to comment.
It's illegal for pull-tab sellers to play the games while selling tickets, gambling officials say, because they might use inside information to give themselves an unfair advantage.
'Whenever sellers are playing, they're cheating,' said Special Agent Cliff Emmert of the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division of the state Department of Public Safety.
Pull-tabs are a regulated form of gambling that charities and other nonprofit organizations use to make money. Customers generally buy them in bars from a bartender or someone in a booth, usually for a dollar each. Players can win $1 to $500"

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