Seminoles Give In On Erroneous Jackpot

Before he knew it, he was being congratulated by casino employees and told he had won $259,945.75.

Immediately he signed promotional forms and was even photographed holding an oversized check announcing the amount he had won. Problem was, 15 hours later he was told by casino executives he did not win because of an error.

Now it was the casino that was making amends. Hard Rock CEO Jim Allen has told Howard and his attorney he will get paid the full amount. While Howard is quoted as saying he would “sign the check himself” if an analysis by an independent party showed he won.

However, it became more of a public relations gaffe when the casino originally took the money away. When the story broke there was a natural backlash.

It was a human error, not a computer error,\'\' Bloom explained last week as the story gained traction. He said several employees got it wrong when they read results and erroneously thought he had won the jackpot. He has not provided the specifics of how the mistake was actually made and said they did not follow procedure. He said the employees did not follow proper procedures for determining prize winners and said the mistake was made an hour after the incident. There was no explanation for why the casino waited an additional 14 hours before contacting Howard.

When he originally won he told Florida’s Sun-Sentinel: "People were coming up to congratulate me; employees, players, even the woman from the surveillance room." "Everyone there knows me. I felt like a champion."

After being told he was really a loser he said he felt numb. "I was like, `How do you figure? Last night it was all confirmed. I had the big check, the pictures, the whole entourage.\' He said, `We\'re going to review it internally.\'"

Only after Howard’s attorney took the story to the papers did the casino’s executives begin to change their tune.

According to a statement, Seminole Hard Rock public relations manager Julianne Carelli summed up the situation. “As with many casino jackpots, a verification process occurred. This verification process confirmed that the prize had not been won. Seminole Tribal Gaming Commission is reviewing and investigating the patron complaint of the alleged winning," she wrote.

Another mistake was made earlier this year at the same promotional machine. However, in this case a man who swiped his credit card left the casino without being notified of a big win of $243,000.

The casino was able to track him down through information on his Player’s Club account and given all of his winnings.

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