An east side clothing store reopened on Wednesday, one day after hundreds of people came to the store looking to get free merchandise from a woman who claimed she won the lottery.
Workers at Burlington Coat Factory, located on East Main Street, spent most of Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon cleaning the mess after hundreds of people left, 10TV's Tanisha Mallett reported.
The woman, who 10TV News is not identifying because she was not charged, was in court Wednesday morning on previous charges, including making false 911 calls. She is awaiting a mental evaluation, Mallett reported.
SLIDESHOW: Images From Report
Police were called in to control the crowd after it became apparent the woman did not win the lottery and did not have the money to pay for anything.
The woman's daughter, Quaiana Robinson, said that the intentions were not malicious and that her mother suffers from a mental illness.
"I want people to know my mom was not in her right mind," Quiana Robinson said. "She has not been on her medication."
Robinson said that her mother has suffered with mental illness since she was 18.
"When she gets off her medication, she going to do extravagant things," Robinson said. "She's going to get limos and drive around the city."
Robinson said that she and her siblings feel terrible about what has happened but wanted the people affected to know that her mother meant no harm.
"We've never experienced anything like this," Robinson said. "She's not a crazy type of person who goes out and causes trouble. She wanted to help people she just didn't have the means to help."
Stay with 10TV News and 10TV.com for continuing coverage.
Previous Stories:
October 14, 2009:
Store Remains Closed After Woman's Lottery Claim
October 13, 2009:
Clothing Store Trashed After Woman's Winning Lottery Claim
