1980 Pennsylvania Lottery Scandal - Aftermath

Aftermath

A grand jury was brought forth and charges were leveled against all six men. Plevel was convicted and spent two years in prison. Bock, Luman and Moran pleaded guilty in exchange for lighter sentences. The Maragos brothers avoided jail time by agreeing to testify against Perry. Much of the $1.8 million was recovered from the Maragos brothers, as were numerous lottery tickets.

Perry was convicted of criminal conspiracy, criminal mischief, theft by deception, rigging a publicly exhibited contest, and perjury in 1981. He was sentenced to seven years in prison. He served two years at Camp Hill State Penitentiary and spent another year at a halfway house in the East Liberty section of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Perry remained on parole until March 1989. He held a number of jobs after prison including an unsuccessful attempt to return to broadcasting in the late 1980s. Perry died in Attleboro, Massachusetts on April 22, 2003, having never admitted to any role in the plot.

After the scandal, the Pennsylvania Lottery and other drawings began taking greater precautions to guard against rigging.

In Pennsylvania, the number 666 is still often referred to as a "Nick Perry." The combination 666 came up as the winning number in the mid-day drawing most recently on March 31, 2011—the 18th time in the Lottery's history.

The drawings for the Lottery were moved from WTAE to WHP-TV in the state capital in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and, in terms of airing in the Pittsburgh market, to KDKA-TV within a year of the incident. (In Harrisburg, despite the drawings being held at WHP, they air locally on rival station WGAL, which ironically has been a sister station to WTAE since 1999) It would not be until July 1, 2009 that the Lottery would resume airing on WTAE in the Pittsburgh market.