Man hits $55 million jackpot, offered $90 and a meal instead
152 replies, posted
[QUOTE]If it looks too good to be true, it probably is – a man has found this out the hard way after his massive winnings at a casino were found to be the result of a software glitch.
Swiss gambler Behar Merlaku was overjoyed when the slot machine at an Austrian casino alerted him to the payout of more than $55 million.
However his excitement soon turned into disappointment when the casino bosses blamed the winning alerts on a software glitch and refused to pay him the jackpot, The Daily Mail has reported.
Instead, they offered him about $90 and a free meal, which he declined. Following his refusal, he was banned from the casino.
"The jackpot came up loud and clear. There was music and the sum I had won - nearly 43 million euros ($55 million) - was displayed on a screen. I was so overjoyed and in my head I began calculating what I could do with all this money," Merlaku told The Daily Mail.
Now the disgruntled 26-year-old will file a lawsuit in Austria to force the casino into paying him the ‘win’.
His lawyers argue Merlaku is entitled to the money as it showed on the machines. He even used his mobile phone to film the footage of the winning noise and screen.
The lawyers for the casino have blamed the machine manufacturers and also cited an Austrian law that says jackpots cannot normally be higher than $2.5 million.
The civil action is being thought to be the biggest claim of its kind anywhere in the world and is being keenly watched by gamblers.[/QUOTE]
source: [url]http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/world/12331963/man-hits-casino-jackpot-offered-90-and-a-meal-instead/[/url]
Daily mail...
But shit, that's gotta be gutting.
He's got a good case though, with unfair treatment and recordings of him getting the win message.
Wow, that must've sucked so bad when they told him it was just a bug.
The Daily Mail
[quote]The lawyers for the casino have blamed the machine manufacturers and also cited an Austrian law that says jackpots cannot normally be higher than $2.5 million.[/quote]
Then give him $2.5 million.
They were probably lying anyway
Why did they ban him from the casino for refusing the meal and $90?
[QUOTE=Aleister;33700556]Why did they ban him from the casino for refusing the meal and $90?[/QUOTE]
they probably think hes an "ungrateful bastard"
Honestly this is why I'm never going to casino's, it's all a bunch of bullshit to stem as much money as possible from you.
Read about this in our local newspaper today, what a load of shit.
The bastards could've at least given him the 2.5 million.
It's a software glitch if you win? This Casino sounds legit.
"Dear GambleMachines LTD,
One of our slot machines actually told a customer they won today. Clearly, this is a bug. Please review the code and allow us to replace the code on the machines
Thanks."
Oh you won the jackpot? Damn sorry man but thats a error in the machine itself, here have a coupon to get a free drink, on the house
Thats so ridiculous. They just don't wanna pay up.
[QUOTE=mooty;33700263] I was so overjoyed and in my head I began calculating what I could do with all this money[/QUOTE]
That depressed me because I've had that feeling before when I would calculate my checks in my head but forget about the tax cuts.
I can see their case if the jackpots truly cannot be larger than that.
I mean, perhaps there WAS a glitch and his win wasn't even supposed to happen, let alone win $55 million. We gotta think about both sides here.
Or, you know, just continue to go the way you're going and automatically label the casino as the badguy after only hearing part of the story, cause thats not one-sided and unfair at all.
Except the only way the casino profits is if it is the bad guy.
[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;33701089]I can see their case if the jackpots truly cannot be larger than that.
I mean, perhaps there WAS a glitch and his win wasn't even supposed to happen, let alone win $55 million. We gotta think about both sides here.
Or, you know, just continue to go the way you're going and automatically label the casino as the badguy after only hearing part of the story, cause thats not one-sided and unfair at all.[/QUOTE]
The only way they can say the win was not supposed to happen is if they know that a win cannot happen.
[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;33701089]I can see their case if the jackpots truly cannot be larger than that.
I mean, perhaps there WAS a glitch and his win wasn't even supposed to happen, let alone win $55 million. We gotta think about both sides here.
Or, you know, just continue to go the way you're going and automatically label the casino as the badguy after only hearing part of the story, cause thats not one-sided and unfair at all.[/QUOTE]
But it's their fault that there was a bug, he was told he had won, and that is heartbreaking to find out you didn't. I think they should just give him the 2.5 million, because they could end up losing more in court.
[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;33701089]I can see their case if the jackpots truly cannot be larger than that.
I mean, perhaps there WAS a glitch and his win wasn't even supposed to happen, let alone win $55 million. We gotta think about both sides here.
Or, you know, just continue to go the way you're going and automatically label the casino as the badguy after only hearing part of the story, cause thats not one-sided and unfair at all.[/QUOTE]
Well then give him the highest jackpot payout in normal circumstances. They are arguing $55million is a bug, which means he still won. So then give him the $2.5 million instead. Unless they are saying him winning is a bug, in which case they would just be creating an even worse situation for themselves.
They have to be lying, if not, that's a huge fuck up, the man deserves something.
2.5 million is pocket money to most casinos, I don't understand why they just don't give him that amount to avoid all this fuss.
Good. Show me the source code for the bug.
[QUOTE=TheHypnotoad;33700279]Daily mail...
But shit, that's gotta be gutting.
He's got a good case though, with unfair treatment and recordings of him getting the win message.[/QUOTE]
Just because its daily mail doesn't mean its not news
Just give the guy a measly 2.5 million dollars that they have lying around and prevent being sued for around 55 million
Everyone wins
Just not as much as the machine said
[QUOTE=Edthefirst;33701308]Well then give him the highest jackpot payout in normal circumstances. They are arguing $55million is a bug, which means he still won. So then give him the $2.5 million instead. Unless they are saying him winning is a bug, in which case they would just be creating an even worse situation for themselves.[/QUOTE]
Apparantley the bug made it appear that he won, but the machine was a 5-slot machine, and he only got 4 of the 5 needed to win, but the machine said he won, so that's probably why the casino's disputing it.
Tought they offered him 90 million instead of 50 when reading the title...
[QUOTE='[CWG]RustySpannerz;33701187']But it's their fault that there was a bug, he was told he had won, and that is heartbreaking to find out you didn't. I think they should just give him the 2.5 million, because they could end up losing more in court.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, bugs aren't intentional, and it did get his hopes up only to be met with some pocket change and a big mac... but you still aren't looking at this from their perspective.
Your casino is doing grand, people in, people out, money money money.
SUddenly, a man explodes in joy saying he won the jackpot of $55 million.
Thats funny, that shouldn't have been possible. Jackpots aren't supposed to be higher than $2.5 million.
He runs around happily, and then your boss gets to tell him that his win isn't legit, there was an error that has never been seen before in their systems and its actually a false jackpot. They'd be more than happy to pay for a nice dinner and $90 (which seems like it'd be the money he spent that night, possibly gas, or the fare at the hotel he might have stayed at), but they're sorry that this has happened and they'll try to not let it happen again. And then the dude flips his shit and refuses the dinner and $90, and may have been a total ass about it, we don't know because the article doesn't say because its aimed to make the casino look like a bunch of dickbutts. He could have been a total ass about it, and the casino threw him out cause... he was a total ass about it.
[QUOTE=Zero-Point;33701586]Apparantley the bug made it appear that he won, but the machine was a 5-slot machine, and he only got 4 of the 5 needed to win, but the machine said he won, so that's probably why the casino's disputing it.[/QUOTE]
That's their problem, not this guys'
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