Hoosier Lottery Technical Issue Stops Space Invaders Sales After $100,000 Win Falls to $20
Mike Fields said a hoosier lottery technical issue turned what looked like a $100,000 Space Invaders Cash Invasion scratch-off win into a $20 payout after he scanned the ticket and drove to lottery headquarters in Downtown Indianapolis. The Hoosier Lottery stopped selling the new $5 game after it said the launch was affected by a technical issue.
Fields, an Indianapolis forklift driver, bought four Space Invaders Cash Invasion tickets. He said he went to Hoosier Lottery headquarters expecting to collect the prize that appeared on the ticket, then was told he would not be paid that day and would hear by mail within 30 days.
Mike Fields at headquarters
“They never told us ‘no’ they just said we wouldn’t be paid today, and no other information really except that we would be informed by mail within 30 days,” Fields said after visiting the headquarters. The ticket he thought showed a $100,000 prize was later treated as worth $20.
The lottery launched Space Invaders Cash Invasion on June 2 and later posted a warning on its website about the $5 scratch-off. In that notice, it said: “The $5 SPACE INVADERS™ Cash Invasion Scratch-off launched with a technical issue. We halted the sales of the ticket to ensure the game experience upholds the integrity we strive to provide,”
Glendon Jones in Indianapolis
Fields was not the only player sent away with questions. Glendon Jones said he believed he had won $2,500 on a Space Invaders scratcher and went to Hoosier Lottery headquarters in Indianapolis, where he was told the result was a system glitch, a mess up, or a misprint.
“They said to come down here to headquarters and they would pay the ticket. I get here and they say it’s a mess up, misprint and that I’m pretty much out of luck on it,” Jones said outside the building.
Hoosier Lottery protest forms
The lottery said the technical issue affected multiple players, including some with prizes in the low thousands. It told players who had problems with a purchased ticket to send in a protest form along with the scratcher.
For players who believed they had a winning Space Invaders Cash Invasion ticket, the immediate step is to keep the ticket and follow the protest process the lottery posted. Fields said he was told by mail within 30 days, while Jones left headquarters with no payout and a disputed result.
