Woman lost out on thousands of dollars after big casino mistake
Cynthia Obie from Maryland said she lost out on thousands of dollars after the casino staff took down her Social Security number wrong.
A Maryland woman who thought she hit the jackpot Friday night ended up going home with jack squat -- all because of a typo.
It was a selfie she thought was worth nearly $43 million.
Cynthia Obie told FOX5DC she was at the MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Md. when her slot machine's symbols suddenly aligned and she won a tremendous payout.
“I was very excited. Like, I need this money,” Obie told the news station.
But Obie said that when casino staff took down her personal information, they misread her Social Security — by one number.
- Even with the big win, Sherwin continued to play the slots once or twice a week in hopes of being the first, second-time winner. Sixteen years later, he won 21 million dollars in the same jackpot.
- Know your limits and play within your budget. Not setting a gambling budget is perhaps one of the.
China shores slot machine app. That mistake cost Obie nearly everything.
The Social Security number the casino plugged in belonged to an individual who happened to owe Maryland a hefty amount of child support, FOX5DC reported.
“I’m like, 'No. All of my daughters are grown. I’ve never paid child support.' I’m like, 'this can’t be right,'” she said.
![Vegas Vegas](https://www.casinolifemagazine.com/sites/default/files/pictures/Hostedd article image.jpg)
The Maryland woman said she would have been thousands of dollars richer by now -- she did not reveal the exact amount of the jackpot -- but the typo prevented her from getting a penny. Instead, she was offered a $200 free play credit and drink vouchers for the night.
An MGM spokesperson said in a statement to FOX5DC the casino is aware of the “unfortunate error” and is working on fixing the situation.
“Due to MLGCA [Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency] rules and Maryland State Law, we cannot provide an additional payout for this jackpot, however, if she presents the proper identification credentials to the Maryland Gaming Commission, they will provide her with the appropriate payout,” the statement read. “We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused Ms. Obie.”
Obie said she’s frustrated with the situation and just wants the money she won.
“Now I’m at the point, this is insane. You guys are a billion-dollar corporation,' she said. 'You do the research: I won fair and square. I just want my money.'
Every year the slot machine jackpots get bigger online and throughout the world. Nevertheless, it seems that the biggest slot jackpots still all come from Las Vegas, the fabled Sin City. In the spirit of big jackpots, we present to you a list of the seven largest slot machine jackpots in Vegas history.
1.Excalibur
Biggest Slot Machine Wins Video
March 21, 2003
$39.7+ million
$39.7+ million
Megabucks is the most popular progressive slot machine in Las Vegas. It only requires $3.00 to win the jackpot, and the smallest possible jackpot is a whopping $10 million. It’s really no surprise that this game holds the record. The biggest the jackpot has ever gotten was $39,710,826.36, and it was won by a software engineer from Los Angeles who chose to remain anonymous.
2.Desert Inn
January 26, 2000
$34.9+ million
Cynthia Jay-Brennan
$34.9+ million
Cynthia Jay-Brennan
It should be no surprise that the second biggest slot machine jackpot in Las Vegas history is also from a Megabucks machine, this time at the Desert Inn. The amount was $34,955,489.56, and the winner was Cynthia Jay-Brennan, a cocktail waitress. This win has given rise to a bittersweet Vegas legend. Six weeks prior to winning, Cynthia was rear-ended by a drunk driver. The accident left her paralyzed and killed her sister.
3.Palace Station
November 15, 1998
$27.5+ million
$27.5+ million
Would you believe that Megabucks also holds the third spot? This jackpot was $27,580,879.60, and it was won by a 67-year-old retired flight attendant. This was the first time Megabucks had surpassed $20 million, but the best part of the story was the retiree had won $680,000 on a Wheel of Fortune machine at the same casino the previous year.
4.Bally’s
March 27, 2002
$22.6+ million
Johanna Huendl
$22.6+ million
Johanna Huendl
At this point, we’ll stop being impressed by Megabucks. On March 27, 2002, 74-year-old Johanna Huendl went to breakfast at Bally’s. As she waited for her food, she played a few spins on the Megabucks machine and walked away with $22,618,156.67.
5.Caesars Palace
June 1, 1999
$21.3+ million
$21.3+ million
![Slot Slot](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/50FygNA_H0A/hqdefault.jpg)
On June 1, 1999, a 49-year-old business consultant from Illinois walked into Caesars Palace and won $21,346,952.22 on the very first spin on a Megabucks machine. He hadn’t even planned to stay long, and even though he chose to remain anonymous, his story remains a Las Vegas legend.
6.Cannery Casino
September 15, 2005
$21.1+ million
Elmer Sherwin
$21.1+ million
Elmer Sherwin
Biggest Slot Machine Winner
This is another Megabucks win, another crazy story. Elmer had won $4.6 million in 1989 at the Mirage, and he vowed to hit it again. He finally did 16 years later at the ripe old age of 92.
7.ARIA
January 21, 2011
$12.7+ million
$12.7+ million
A woman and her husband were staying at the ARIA Resort & Casino. They were in town for their niece’s birthday and hadn’t even planned to gamble much. While waiting one afternoon, she tried her hands at Megabucks and won the big one after spending just $6.
Biggest Slot Machine Winners Recorded
Most of the biggest jackpots in history have come from slot machines in Las Vegas. As online jackpots continue getting larger, it won’t be long before an online casino, and free slots make the list.
Photo by Miikka Skaffari