TORONTO

Police to vet 341 claims to $12.5 million jackpot

The Canadian Press Published Sunday, October 10, 2010 1:15PM EDT

OPP Commissioner Chris Lewis announces the arrest of three people, Kathleen Chung, Jun-Chul Chung and Kenneth Chung, in a case of lottery insider fraud at a press conference in Toronto on Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2010. (Adrien Veczan / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

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TORONTO - Hundreds of claimants of an allegedly stolen $12.5-million jackpot are a step closer to getting their hands on the money.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation says it has forwarded 341 files to police.

That means the claimants' answers to detailed questions about their lottery habits deserve further investigation.

Hundreds of calls flooded the lottery office and the Ontario Provincial Police hours after they announced a search for the "rightful" owner of the ticket.

Last month, police charged a Toronto-area convenience store employee and his two children with stealing the ticket seven years ago.

The lottery corporation says it has a profile of the lottery spending habits of the unknown person who originally bought the ticket in St. Catharines.