Lottery luck runs out for drug dealer

[MORTARDUDE]

Lottery luck runs out for drug dealer
By Monica Polanco

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Friday, June 6, 2003

Apparently, $5.5 million was not enough for Jose Luis Betancourt.

After the 52-year-old Brownsville resident won the lottery in December, he kept trying to make more money by selling cocaine. Unfortunately for Betancourt, one of his buyers was a federal informant.

Now, the federal jury that convicted him of drug trafficking says he must return his millions because the Lotto Texas ticket he bought for $1 was purchased with drug money.

Wednesday's ruling also ordered him to forfeit $76,000, the amount the jury determined that he earned by selling drugs after striking it rich.

In the Texas Lottery Commission's 11-year history, this is the first time officials can remember a Lotto winner being convicted on drug charges and ordered to forfeit earnings, said Leticia Vasquez, a commission spokeswoman.

The Brownsville Tejano Mart that sold the winning ticket and received a $120,000 bonus from the commission has not been affected by the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jody Young said he was pleased with the jury's verdict, but Betancourt's lawyer said prosecutors did not prove Betancourt bought the winning ticket with drug money.

During the trial, jurors heard a 30-minute taped conversation between Betancourt and a federal informant. On the tape, Betancourt talked about his 20-year involvement with drug trafficking and his connection to the Gulf Cartel, an organization responsible for transporting from Mexico a majority of the cocaine and marijuana in the United States, Young said.

Prosecutors also told the jury that Betancourt did not have a legitimate job.

His lawyer, Baltazar Salazar of Houston, said he plans to appeal.

In addition to the criminal charges, Betancourt is faced with a civil lawsuit. His neighbor, Guadalupe Rosales, claims he and Betancourt had an agreement to share any lottery winnings. Salazar said his client never agreed to split lottery winnings with his neighbor.

Betancourt claimed the money in January.

"When I checked the El Nuevo Heraldo and realized I had won, I thought it was a wonderful experience, and then I felt very tranquil," Betancourt told lottery officials. His message to others? "S? se puede -- It can be done."

After the jury's decision, Betancourt could not be reached for comment.

He is being detained until his sentencing hearing Sept. 2. He faces a maximum punishment of life in federal prison without parole and up to $4 million in fines.