Lottery Winner’s Poisoning Death Questioned

Inspired by religious pilgrimage to lead a better life, Chicago man played on last time

Urooj Khan might be one of the unluckiest men of 2012. The 46-year-old Chicago resident made a religious pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, had pledged to live a better life and swore off playing the lottery – except just one last time. The scratch-off ticket he bought was a $1 million winner, but Khan would not live to enjoy the winnings. He died suddenly on July 20 of natural causes, the Cook County Medical Examiner’s determined. Now, a relative’s pleas have prompted authorities to reopen the investigation, in which they have determined that Khan ingested a lethal dose of cyanide. The finding triggered a homicide investigation, the Chicago Police Department said on Monday. There are no reported leads in the case. Khan, however, received his lottery winnings the day before his death, lottery officials said. He was paid a lump sum of more than $600,000 -- that's about $425,000 after taxes. (Associated Press)

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