As the old adage goes, money isn't everything. And for some people it could be the worst thing. While winning the lottery may seem like a dream come true, not everyone who hits the jackpot goes on to live happily ever after.
The big winner who suddenly has lots of money also has all types of unforeseen pressures...and, of course, newfound means that can get them into trouble. Many crack under the pressure, end up dealing with jealous family or loved ones, and (since money is no object) quite a few have turned to drugs.
Seems there has been a curse on lottery big winners. Some winners have encountered strange deaths, ended up as murder victims, committed suicide, or met an otherwise untimely death. Here's a list of 10 Lottery winners who died tragically because of their winnings.
11 Lottery Winners Who Died Tragically,
Abraham Shakespeare
Another big winner, Abraham Shakespeare hit it large in the Florida state lotto for $31 million. Shakespeare lived it up for a couple of years, almost having spent all his money until he suddenly disappeared in 2006. His body was found under a concrete slab in 2010. Suspicions turned to a woman Shakespeare was associated with who had apparently bilked him out of over a million dollars. She was eventually charged in connection to his murder.
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Amanda Clayton
Single mom Amanda Clayton struck it rich hitting the lotto in Michigan for $1 million in 2011. A welfare recipient, Clayton had previously struggled to take care of her two kids. But greed is a strange thing. She was convicted of welfare fraud and sentenced to probation when it was discovered that she continued to receive food stamps after hitting the lotto. Possibly, it could've been a bad drug habit that drove Clayton to deceive the government. Only 25-years old, she was found dead in 2012 due to a drug overdose.
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Ryan McKechnie
It looked like life was offering Ryan McKechnie another chance when the 31-year-old hit the Irish lotto in 2012 for £40 000 (66,552.00 in U.S. dollars). A former drug addict, McKechnie had already kicked the habit prior to winning and was in the midst of raising his three children alone after their mother died of drug-related causes in 2013.
Generous with his friends, however, the money was quickly gone, forcing McKechnie to struggle to make ends meet for he and his family. Apparently, someone believed that he still had a stash of cash. He was found stabbed to death in his home in February.
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Urooj Khan
Poor Urooj Khan should've kept his promise to himself. A lottery-ticket-buying addict, he'd sworn off buying lottery tickets. But the 46-year-old Chicagoan couldn't fight the urge; he had to buy one more. Bam! His ticket hits the million dollar jackpot. Lucky son of a gun.
Deciding to cash out the ticket in one lump sum instead of installments, Khan waited with much anticipation for that first check of $425,000.00. Tragically, he never saw a dime of it. He suddenly dropped dead the day after his winnings were publicly announced. The coroner said it was natural causes. But a close family member wasn't buying it. Sure enough, another autopsy revealed that Khan died of cyanide poisoning. And after he was dead, his estate quickly cashed the check. Naturally, the local police department is treating his death now as a homicide.
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Craigory Burch, Jr.
Craigory Burch, Jr. won nearly a half million dollars from a Georgia lottery in November of 2015. Just two months later, he was found dead in his home from gunshot wounds after a violent home invasion. Armed robbers entered the 20-year-old's home with masks and shotguns, demanding his money. According to his girlfriend, who ran for help during the robbery, Burch pleaded with them not to kill him in front of his kids. He told them they could have his bank card, but when the thieves couldn't find his wallet, they shot him and ran away. Burch had recently used some of his $434,272 Fantasy 5 winnings to buy Christmas presents for the less fortunate.
Jeffrey Dampier
An enterprising man, when Jeffrey Dampier won $20 million in the Illinois state jackpot, he took some of his winnings and opened up a gourmet popcorn shop. He also lavished gifts on his sister-in-law with whom he'd been having an affair.
Unfortunately, Dampier's sister-in-law had plans for some of the money that hadn't been spent. Along with her boyfriend, she helped kidnap Dampier and then shot him to death. The couple were convicted for the crime and both are serving life sentences.
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Billie Bob Harrell, Jr.
Good old boy Billie Bob Harrell, Jr., was on top of the world when he hit the $31 million dollar jackpot in Texas. Who wouldn't be? That's a lotta moolah. Billie Bob quit his job, took his family to Hawaii, and - generous soul that he was - donated tens of thousands to various charities. Sadly, he made a deal with a company to pay him a lump sum instead of allotments over time. Doing so, he ended up receiving far less than he originally won. That along with constant harassment over his money and his wife ultimately leaving him more than likely pushed him over the edge. He was found at his home, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
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Doris Murray
All Doris Murray's dreams were about to come true when she struck it rich hitting the Georgia state lottery jackpot for $5 million. But unlike some other lotto winners who squander their money, the mother of four kept a low profile and continued to live modestly. Too bad she didn't have the greatest taste in men.
After she threatened to break up with her boyfriend, he stabbed her to death just a year after she won the lottery. Family and friends insist it was all over the money.
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Keith Gough
What a tragic tale. Keith Gough seemed like a really nice guy. After winning a whooping £9 million ($14,993,100.00 in U.S. dollars) in 2005, Keigh Gough pulled out all stops. An avid horse race fan, he blew millions at the tracks and other gambling pursuits. Apparently, he wasn't the brightest apple in the barrel either; he invested a large amount of his cash in shady business deals. In short, his wife left him and he ended up penniless.
So upset was he over his financial ruin that he suffered a heart attack at the home of his nephew and died.
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David Edwards
Another big spender, David Edwards went through $12 million in his first year as a lottery legend. But hey, that must've seemed like a drop in the bucket in comparison to his overall winnings, which totaled $270 million.
After purchasing a Learjet, mansions, a fleet of cars and squandering away untold amounts of cash, poor David ended up living in a storage unit with his wife. Having contracted hepatitis due to intravenous drug use, David died at the age of 58 completely penniless in a hospice somewhere in Kentucky.
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