Kentucky man wins $250K on scratch-off, celebration ends in arrest

ELSMERE, Ky. (WXIX) - Less than a week after winning a “life-changing” $250,000, a Kentucky man was arrested for meth possession and drug paraphernalia.

Joseph Hellard was the big winner on a Kentucky Lottery scratch-off ticket on Feb. 26.

He called the moment “life-changing” and planned on buying a new home and vehicle with his winnings, according to WXIX.

The celebration might have gone a little too far, though.

Two days after claiming his $250,000 prize, Hellard was arrested on drug-related charges, Kenton County Prosecutor Rob Sanders confirmed on Thursday.

Hellard was pulled over on March 2 after Erlanger, Kentucky, police noticed his vehicle registration had expired, the arrest report reads.

Officers called a K-9 team to the scene to search Hellard’s vehicle.

As they searched, officers found a smoking pipe that had a white crystal substance in it, according to police. The substance in the pipe was determined to be meth, the arrest report says.

Hellard was taken to the Kenton County Detention Center and has since bonded out, jail records indicate.

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