1. Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpot Winnings
2. Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpot Slots
3. Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpot Money
4. Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpots

Katrina Bookman thought that her life had changed forever. While at the Resorts World Casino in New York, Bookman began playing the Sphinx slot machine. According to WABC, Bookman won close to $43 million.

She began taking selfies at the slot machine as she was surrounded by casino guests, staff and security. Bookman began thinking about how the winnings would help to improve her life, her family’s lives, and the community. After being escorted away from the casino with security surrounding her, she was told to come back to the casino the following day.

An Oregon woman landed on the $8 million jackpot while playing the slot machine at a Lucky Eagle Casino, but walked away empty-handed when the casino told her the machine malfunctioned. A US woman is suing a casino that told her the slot machine displaying a $43m (£34m) jackpot was faulty and offered a steak dinner instead, reports say.

However, when she returned to the casino, she received bad news. Casino officials claimed that the machine had a malfunction and that they would not pay her the $43 million. The statement, “Malfunctions void all pays and plays,” is on every slot machine. In return, Bookman was only offered a steak dinner by the casino.

Bookman hired an attorney who said that the casino should at least give her the $6,500, which is the machine’s highest maximum payout. The casino said Bookman actually only won $2.25.

The casino and New York State Gaming Commission should be investigated by federal agents. If the casino doesn’t have to pay winners when slot machines malfunction, the casino should be forced to pay back the customers who put their hard-earned money into the machine. The reaction by the casino and New York State Gaming Commission could convince some people that the games in the casino are rigged and customers aren’t given legit chances to win.

After Bookman won the money, the casino allegedly decided to pull the machine and fix the problem. But Bookman believes that she deserves more for being a winner. She plans to sue the casino.

Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpot Winnings

While some people are lucky enough to win big at casinos, the hardest part can sometimes be collecting the winnings.

Inside Edition’s investigative team found people who thought they'd be taking home huge jackpots, only to discover that wasn't the case.

Katrina Bookman, 44, thought she hit a $42.9 million jackpot at Resorts World Casino in Queens, N.Y., in 2016. She even posed next to the winning machine as it displayed her earnings.
“I thought it was my lucky day,” she told Inside Edition.

Crowds started to surround Katrina to congratulate her, but soon security took her aside and she was eventually told that the machine had malfunctioned and there would be no payday.

“Anytime a machine hits a lot of money, you are going to claim it’s broke,” Katrina said.

She hired a lawyer, Alan Ripka, to take the casino to court. The case is pending.

“When you walk through the door, you expect if you are risking your money, that if you win, you will be paid,” Ripka said.

Construction worker Jerry Rape, 55, and his wife, Kim, couldn't believe it when a slot machine said he'd won $1.3 million at the Wind Creek Casino in Montgomery, Ala., in 2011.

“I thought I was a millionaire,” he told Inside Edition. “I thought it was my lucky day.”

But 24 hours after he thought he had “won,' he was also told the 'machine malfunctioned.'

“Very devastating,” he said

Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpot Slots

He also hired an attorney, Matt Abbott.

“In this circumstance, the Creek Indian tribe was the judge, the jury and ultimate say so on whether they were going to pay a jackpot that [they] should have paid,” said Abbott.

Veronica Castilla was stunned when the machine showed she had won $8.5 million at the Lucky Eagle casino outside Seattle.

“I was excited; I couldn't believe it,” she said. “I was in shock.”

She even took out her camera to snap pictures.

“I started to ask, 'Where's my prize?'” she recalled.

But just like the others, she was told the machine had malfunctioned.

“They took my money but didn’t want to pay my winnings,” she claimed.

Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpot Money

Washington is among a handful of states with its own casino lab, where gaming machines are regularly inspected.

“Nationwide, it's extremely rare to see a major machine malfunction, so consumers should feel confident that when they are sitting down at a gaming machine, it's going to function properly,” Heather Songer of the Washington State Gambling Commission told Inside Edition.

That's little solace for Katrina Bookman, Jerry Rape, and Veronica Castillo, who felt like they were millionaires — for at least a few minutes.

“I'm going to fight,' Castillo said. 'This is not over.'

The casinos say malfunctions are extremely rare and when errors occur, any payouts are void. In the cases of Bookman, Rape and Castillo, the jackpots actually exceeded what the machines could pay out.

RELATED STORIES

Woman Sues Casino For Not Paying Jackpots

These Hotel Bathrooms May Not Be As Clean As You Wish They Were: Investigation