Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up
New Yorker had declared bankruptcy before $149 million windfall
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Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up
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Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up -
Feds To Lotto Winner: Pay Up
JANUARY 20--The Justice Department is seeking the dismissal of a bankruptcy court petition filed by the New York City man who won a $149 million lottery jackpot weeks after seeking Chapter 7 protection. Now that Juan Rodriguez, 49, has banked a $60 million lump-sum Mega Millions payout, his bid to wipe out nearly $45,000 in debts should be tossed, according to the below January 14 bankruptcy court application by United States Trustee Deirdre Martini (the U.S. trustee, an arm of the Department of Justice, is responsible for overseeing the integrity of bankruptcy proceedings). Rodriguez, a former $30,000-a-year parking lot attendant, filed for bankruptcy last October. One month later, a court review determined that Rodriguez was flat broke and unable to repay his bills, which included a $2279 Internal Revenue Service lien and assorted credit card tabs. However, a day after that court determination, Rodriguez was suddenly flush with Mega Millions cash. While Rodriguez would tell reporters that he wanted to settle his debts, he never responded to a December 9 letter sent to him by the U.S. Trustee "regarding his change in circumstances." While noting that there is "no question" that Rodriguez's original petition was filed in good faith, the trustee argued that the multimillionaire's continuing bid to get his debts discharged amounted to "substantial abuse" of the Bankruptcy Code. Rodriguez's aggregate debt, the trustee noted, "constitutes less than 1/10th of 1% of the $60 million." (10 pages)
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