Couple facing charges for fake $1M winning Florida Lottery ticket

ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. (WEAR) — A Florida couple has been arrested for allegedly altering a scratch-off ticket into a $1 million winner and submitting it to the Florida Lottery Office in Pensacola.

Kira Lee Enders, 36, was arrested Wednesday afternoon in Walton County on these charges out of Escambia County:

• Grand Theft more than $100,000
• Present Altered State Lottery Ticket
• Alter Lottery Ticket with Intent to Defraud

Dakota Jones, 32, was arrested Tuesday in Escambia County on charges of:

• Principal to Grand Theft more than $100,000
• Principal to Present Altered State Lottery Ticket
• Principal to Alter Lottery Ticket with Intent to Defraud

Enders is being held in Walton County Jail without bond awaiting extradition, while Jones remains in Escambia County Jail on a $17,500 bond.

According to an arrest report, on March 1, Enders took the fraudulent ticket to the Florida Lottery Office on Davis Highway in Pensacola. Jones -- who she is reportedly dating -- drove her to the location.

The report states Enders submitted an official claim of a $1 million winning prize from a "500X The Cash" Florida Lottery scratch-off ticket that she said she purchased in DeFuniak Springs.

The ticket had obvious alterations and is crudely pieced together from two separate actual scratch-off tickets," deputies noted in the report.

Deputies went on to describe how the ticket was put together.

"Each of those tickets were ripped horizontally and then carefully pieced together to become one fraudulently altered ticket using the top half of one of the actual tickets and the bottom half of the other," deputies noted in the report. "That fraudulently altered ticket now visually shows that it is a one-million-dollar prize winner."

According to the report, Enders wrote her full name and address on the claimant information section, as well as on the back of the altered ticket.

The entire ticket is crudely laminated to conceal the fraudulent alterations," deputies noted in the report.

The report states Enders signed acknowledgments on the "Winner Claim Form" regarding fraudulent ticket consequences.

According to the report, on March 7, investigators called Enders and told her she had to come to the Davis Highway lottery office to complete additional "large claim" paperwork. She agreed to meet on March 11.

The report states that upon Enders' arrival with Jones, they were both detained for separate investigations.

According to the report, during questioning, Enders insisted the ticket was legitimate and not altered.

"Jones stated that they are honest people and they aren't into fraud," deputies noted in the report.

Deputies ultimately charged both Enders and Jones following inconsistencies in their statements, according to the report.