Woman drops lottery ticket claim

A US woman who told police she bought and lost a lottery ticket worth $162m (€127m) has all but admitted she made it up, saying tearfully: “I wanted to win so bad for my kids and my family. I apologise.”

Elecia Battle, 40, said yesterday she was dropping her lawsuit over the Mega Millions jackpot which was awarded on Tuesday to 34-year-old Rebecca Jemison.