Lao lottery officials appear to be manipulating their national lottery game to reduce potential payouts, according to sources within the communist country. Drawings of its three weekly game often feature numbers considered unlucky by players or unlikely to be drawn – such as 09 which often appears just before each drawing takes place. One official from RFA’s Lao Service said a Thai company which runs it knows which numbers people choose and can manipulate the results of drawings accordingly.

Cheng Saephan, 46, an immigrant from Laos who relocated to Portland 30 years ago and settled there after working for American forces during Vietnam War and later being relocated from Thailand before eventually settling permanently in America, won the fourth-largest Powerball jackpot this month. He will share his prize of $422 Million with wife Duanpen and friend Laiza Chao who each contributed $100 towards shared tickets he held together with two others he shares tickets with. At a news conference identifying himself as part of Iu Mien ethnic grouping which includes many families who assisted American forces during Vietnam War before being relocated either Thailand before eventually setting roots here or permanently settled by American forces after being relocated back here permanently after moving permanently displaced to United States from Laos subsequently.

He and his wife will donate some of the money to help relatives in Laos and travel there to visit, while also using part of it to assist disadvantaged children here in America.

Another winner is an orphan who grew up in a Laotian orphanage and now lives with her husband in Seattle where she works as an aide in schools. Xia Rattanakone, 44, plans on visiting Laos to search for her birth family; with her $55 million jackpot she plans on retiring from working as an aide in schools and instead focus on working for nonprofit groups providing education and social services, according to The Washington Post.

Vilasack Phommaluck, an official of the committee that oversees the lottery for the finance ministry, said RFA that they were exploring ways to restore faith in the game, such as decreasing from three weekly draws to one per week and prohibiting certain numbers or companies from selling them. But she stressed that none of these measures would block specific numbers or prevent companies from selling them.