New '$80 Billion Gamble' book reveals full story on the largest lottery fraud in US history
‘The $80 Billion Gamble’ book details largest lottery fraud in U.S. history. KCCI's Cynthia Fodor spoke to the authors about the book.
The details of a Hot Lotto lottery scam that swept news headlines are laid out in a new book just published.
Perry Beeman and Terry Rich penned ‘The $80 Billion Gamble: The Inside Story of How A Suspicious Ticket, Hot Dogs, and Bigfoot Foiled the Biggest Lottery Fraud in U.S. History.’
The authors named the 216-page book ‘The $80 Billion Gamble’ because the future of the entire lottery industry was at risk if someone didn't solve this case of computer tampering and multimillion-dollar prizes.
One of the subjects of the book, Eddie Tipton, leaves the Polk County Courthouse in Des Moines, Iowa, after his sentencing in 2015. PHOTO: AP/Charlie Neibergall.
The book gives an inside look at how former Iowa Lottery employee Eddie Tipton won millions by rigging the system and what led investigators to crack the case.
PERRY BEEMAN
Eddie Tipton went to prison in 2017 for masterminding the biggest lottery fraud in U.S. history.
In a twisting and bizarre tale, he somehow mixed a cocktail of greed, Bigfoot hunting, deception, cybercrime and a love of hot dogs on his way to a felony conviction.
Tipton's downfall made international news, but this book tells the story of the investigators and public officials who solved the mystery.
Veteran journalist Perry Beeman and retired lottery executive Terry Rich use a vivid mixture of recorded phone calls, court documents, personal communications and the public record to give readers an exclusive inside view of one of the most surprising and captivating white-collar crimes the nation has seen.
It's a wild story of greed and misplaced confidence, and a study in public officials whose determination survived a nearly cold trail, a team that insisted on being transparent and sticking with the case.
The book is available at Amazon and major bookstores.
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