Anyone who’s lived in a share house before has their fair share of housemate horror stories. From dirty dishes being left to rot in the sink for weeks to shockingly poor form on paying rent, there’s no limit on the number of ways people can make you regret living with them.
But, of all the crappy housemate tales we’ve heard, this one this one takes the cake as the absolute worst, almost costing one of his fellow residents a whopping $14 million. Yep, you read that right. $14 MILLION.
If you’re wondering ‘how is it even possible to cost your housemate that much money?’, the answer lies with a very desirable lottery ticket.
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Rewind the clock back to December and one Vacaville, California, resident decided to buy a lottery ticket in the hope of scoring some extra money to see him through the costly Christmas period.
It wasn’t long before the shopper realised that their ticket was actually a winner and, in his excitement, raced home to tell his housemates.
The next day, when he went back to claim his winnings – believed to be $14,000 – the store told him that his ticket was not actually a winner, and had also been tampered with.
Immediately suspecting that his housemates might have done a dodgy on him, the shopper reported the theft to the local police department.
Sure enough, the next morning, one of his housemates, Adul Saosongyang, went to a nearby store in Sacramento to claim the winnings – which actually turned out to be a whopping $14 million.
The suspected theft was yet to be reported to the Lottery District Office but, as standard procedure for any winnings over $800, the office started conducting their usual security checks on Saosongyang.
When inspectors went to the store where the winning ticket was originally purchased, they were informed of the reported theft and, thanks to video surveillance, noticed a discrepancy with the shopper’s identity.
Detectives soon joined forces with the Lottery District Office and suspected that Saosongyang, upon hearing of his housemate’s winnings, had gone and bought a similar ticket and swapped the slips while his housemate was sleeping.
The Lottery then called Saosongyang in – under the guise of collecting his winnings – only to arrest him on the grounds of Grand Theft.
The local Vacaville Police Department recounted the series of unlikely (and hella unfortunate) events on their Facebook page, including a picture of the accused:
The Police Department is yet to report any further updates on the matter.
So, next time you think your housemate’s being a bit crap, remember this.
