Record Lottery Winner Arrested
A man who won a record $315 million in the Powerball lottery was taken to jail on charges of drunken driving and carrying a pistol, authorities said.
Jack Whittaker, 57, was arrested Tuesday night after his Hummer struck a concrete median on the West Virginia Turnpike near Beckley.
Senior Trooper M.J. Pinardo reported that he smelled alcohol but Whittaker refused sobriety tests and was "extremely belligerent." Troopers also said they found a small pistol in Whittaker's boot and he was carrying $117,000 in cash.
Whittaker, who was alone, complained of back pain. He was treated at a hospital, and then jailed early Wednesday.
Whittaker was released after he was arraigned and posted $1,700 bail. Besides the DUI and weapons charge, he was charged with failure to maintain control of his vehicle and failure to submit to a breath test.
Whittaker won the largest single jackpot in the nation's history when he hit a $314.9 million Powerball jackpot on Christmas Day 2002. He chose to accept a lump sum of about $113 million after taxes.
The DUI arrest was the latest in a series of incidents involving Whittaker since he took home the largest single jackpot ever.
Whittaker's vehicle, business and home have allegedly been broken into multiple times.
The body of 18-year-old Jesse Joe Tribble was found at Whittaker's home in September. Tribble's death was not a crime and Whittaker was out of town at the time.
Last year, a strip club manager and his girlfriend were charged with drugging Whittaker and stealing a briefcase containing more than $500,000 in cash and cashier's checks. The money was recovered.
Last March, within three days, his business was broken into and $2,000 was taken, and his vehicle, parked at his home, was broken into and property was stolen. Earlier in that week, Whittaker was sued by an employee of the Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center who alleged he assaulted her in March 2003.
Last year, he was also charged with threatening to kill the manager of a bar and with drunken driving.