AUSTIN – If you play the lottery, you might not think it's a gamble to ask a store clerk to check your ticket.

You might want to think again.

The case of Willis Willis of Grand Prairie, who prosecutors say lost a million-dollar jackpot to a now-indicted and fugitive store clerk, might be the biggest prize hijack in Texas. But it's not the only one.

Since Jan. 1, 2008, the Lottery Commission has referred at least five other cases to prosecutors after players complained that they weren't paid their rightful winnings: two in Pflugerville near Austin, two in Harris County and one in Brookshire in Waller County.

Defendants entered no-contest pleas in three cases, and prosecutors dropped one each in Houston and Pflugerville, according to records obtained by the San Antonio Express-News.

The lottery licenses for four stores were canceled, according to lottery spokesman Bobby Heith. One license in Pflugerville was not, but the clerk involved was fired, he said.

In addition, the commission gave warnings to 42 retailers. It revoked the licenses of two retailers in failure-to-pay cases, and four had their licenses suspended for 10 to 30 days.

Complaints for which the lottery provided specifics ranged from a couple of dollars to about $500, a drop in the bucket compared with the lottery's $10 million in daily sales.

Still, to players, each carried a sting.

"I went to cash in a $10 winning scratch-off ticket. ... The retailer tried to pay me only $5 until I requested a copy of the printout receipt. He then admitted it was $10. It was not an error," said a complaint about a Humble store owner who ended up pleading no contest to a misdemeanor theft charge and paying a $230 fine in 2008.

The cases highlight calls for change by lottery observers who believe the problem is much bigger than the number of complaints would indicate.

"It's the people who have no idea they've been robbed – that's where the problem is. People can't complain when they don't know they've been had," said Dawn Nettles, who owns the watchdog Lotto Report Web site and who has conducted her own stings in Texas stores.

For her, the answer's simple: "Forbid clerks from checking players' tickets." She also doesn't trust terminals that allow players to check their tickets, saying they can err. She said players should examine their scratch-offs and, if it's an online ticket, get results from newspapers, retailers or online.

Gerald Busald, who teaches math and statistics at San Antonio College and has researched the Texas Lottery with his students, says self-check terminals should be required in all retail locations, clerks shouldn't be allowed to buy tickets in the stores where they work, and the lottery should proactively conduct stings.

"My perspective is that [the complaint tally] is only the tip of the iceberg," Busald said, citing stings in other states.

Lottery spokesman Heith said the agency takes security seriously and works to educate players about how to protect themselves.

"We want the players to have an exciting experience in playing the lottery, and if they see anything they feel like is a problem or a concern to contact us, and we'll investigate it," he said.

The agency also encourages people to sign tickets to prevent someone else from claiming any prize and to make sure they get a receipt when a clerk checks a ticket.