Big lottery winner has lost it all, filing says

Saturday, January 13, 2007 posted 02:21 AM EST

A man beset by problems since winning a record lottery jackpot says he cannot pay a settlement to a casino worker because thieves cleaned out his bank accounts.

Powerball winner Jack Whittaker gave that explanation in a note last fall to an attorney for Kitti French, who accused him of assaulting her at the Tri-State Racetrack and Gaming Center, a slots-only casino near Charleston, according to a motion French's attorney filed this week demanding payment of the confidential settlement.

Whittaker won nearly $315 million on Christmas 2002, then the largest undivided lottery prize in U.S. history. He took his winnings in a lump sum of $113 million after taxes.

Since then, his granddaughter has died of a drug overdose; he has been sued for bouncing checks at casinos in Atlantic City, N.J.; he has been ordered to undergo rehab after being arrested on charges of driving while impaired; his vehicles and business have been burgled; and he has been sued by the father of an 18-year-old boy, a friend of his granddaughter's, who was found dead in Whittaker's house.

In the latest lawsuit, Whittaker told French's attorney, John Barrett, that "a team of crooks" cashed checks in September at 12 City National Bank branches and "got all my money," according to the motion Barrett filed Wednesday.

"I intend to pay but can't without any money," Whittaker wrote, according to the motion.

An official with City National Bank said yesterday that the bank is investigating "small discrepancies" in Whittaker's accounts.

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