Inside tragedy of lottery winners Mack Metcalf and his wife who were found dead 3 years after taking
A COUPLE that had won a multi-million dollar jackpot was later found dead a few years after taking home the big win.
In 2000, Mack Metcalf and his estranged wife Virginia G. Merida cashed in on $34million from a jackpot lottery ticket.
Metcalf and Merida quickly collected their earnings and began spending on high-end items, per The New York Times.
The pair went from having to worry about weekly bills and paying apartment rent on time to likely feeling as though anything was within their price range.
After they divorced in 2001, both Metcalf and Merida began to live with their newfound wealth in what came to be an eerily similar fashion.
For Metcalf, a southern Kentucky estate modeled after George Washington's Mount Vernon property and several vintage cars satisfied his desires.
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Merida purchased a Mercedes-Benz and chose to reside in a mansion near the Ohio River alongside several cats.
However, after a brief period of ease from the new influx of cash, the lottery winners quickly suffered issues.
Marilyn Collins, Metcalf’s first wife, sued him for $31,000 in unpaid child support while a former girlfriend also received $500,000 from while the lottery winner was allegedly intoxicated.
In Merida's case, she said her brother had been harassing her for some time, and a former boyfriend died of a drug overdose in her Ohio River mansion, The New York Times reported.
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Just three years after their win, in 2003, both Metcalf and Merida died within a short period.
Metcalf, 45, died from complications related to his alcoholism, and the body of Merida, 51, was found partially decomposed in her bed by her son, per Louisville news outlet WAVE 3.
Merida's death was the result of a suspected drug overdose, and police noted that they didn't suspect foul play at the time.
It was reported that Metcalf had gotten into trouble with the law on several occasions leading up to his death.
The pair had won the $34.1 million in 2000 by chance off of a three-dollar ticket they had purchased while at a truck stop in Florence, Kentucky, about 12 miles from Cincinnati, Ohio.
Metcalf and Merida opted to take the lump sum distribution option, a move that a lottery lawyer told The U.S. Sun was a big mistake that 90 percent of winners make.
Forty percent went to Merida at a total of $13.6 million, with $20.5 left for Metcalf.
Those closest to the pair argued that their deaths were the result of large amounts of money going to people who suffered from personal issues and had no experience managing such a sum.
"If he hadn’t won, he would have worked like regular people and maybe had 20 years left," Collins told The New York Times.
"But when you put that kind of money in the hands of somebody with problems, it just helps them kill themselves."
David Huff, the buyer who later purchased the Mount Vernon-esk home from Metcalf's estate, echoed a similar sentiment.
"It was a classic case of a person who never had anything and didn't know how to handle it," Huff said to WAVE 3.
"I think things went from bad to worse when he got the money."
For more related content, check out The U.S. Sun's exclusive coverage on why one lottery lawyer says there are two key drains on winnings.
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The U.S. Sun also has the story on a financial advisor's advice for what lottery winners should immediately do when they get their cash.
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