By Kendria Brown, NDG Intern
Michigan lottery winner Amanda Clayton, 25, was found dead on Saturday morning in Detroit. Her death was speculated to be a result of a drug overdose and an autopsy is underway. Friends found Clayton lying in bed holding her 1-year-old daughter. When her daughter could not wake her and began crying, a friend, Rachel, walked in the room and discovered she was dead.
When coming to see her kids Friday night, Rachel’s boyfriend, who did not want to be identified, described her in a statement as, “She was already in a bad stage. Her legs were shaking. You know she was going through her prayers. She was eating food with the kids.”
Clayton was a lottery winner receiving $735,000, yet she still attempted to collect welfare benefits. Michigan’s Department of Human Services was unaware of Clayton’s winnings of last year. When she was charged with fraud in June, she pleaded no contest and was sentenced to nine months of probation in July. She also repaid $5,500 in food and medical benefits.
The lottery winnings brought Clayton a bit more misfortune than happiness. So-called friends began to take advantage of Clayton and her money. A troubled Clayton got tired of the money and bought her family gifts and setup college funds for her kids. An estimated $67,000 is all that remains of her lottery winnings.
Clayton’s mother, whose name is not provided, has refused to make comment.
