ALBUQUERQUE – The New Mexico Lottery is advising the public to be on guard against a telephone scam.
According to Tom Romero, New Mexico Lottery CEO, individuals misrepresenting themselves as being from a lottery or the New Mexico Lottery are calling people and telling them they have won a prize, which they can claim only after paying a processing fee.
“That’s the red warning flag,” Romero said. “If someone tells you that you have to pay a fee to claim a lottery prize, the prize does not exist.”
Romero said people who receive these calls should hang up and report the incident to the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office at 1-800-678-1508 or the New Mexico Lottery Security Enforcement Division at 505-342-7650.
The New Mexico Lottery also suggests the following precautions:
- Never redeem a lottery ticket for someone you do not know.
- Never give your credit card numbers to anyone promising lottery cash prizes or memberships.
- Never respond or send money to someone who offers you a guarantee of winning a prize. The
New Mexico Lottery does not guarantee you a prize, only a chance of winning one if you buy a legal ticket from an authorized New Mexico Lottery retailer.
- If you are going to participate in a “lottery pool,” do so only with people you know and trust.
- Buy lottery tickets only from authorized New Mexico Lottery retailers.
More information about avoiding scams is available here.
Legislative Lottery Scholarships
All profits from the sale of New Mexico Lottery games fund an in-state college tuition assistance program. Since 1996, the New Mexico Lottery has raised $563 million for education and more than 82,600 students have attended college on Legislative Lottery Scholarships. More information about Legislative Lottery Scholarships is available at www.nmlottery.com.
Follow the New Mexico Lottery on Facebook (www.facebook.com/nmlottery) and YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/NewMexicoLottery).