Hundreds Of Millions Of Dollars Up For Grabs At State Fair

The state of Oklahoma has hundreds of millions of dollars in property and cash up for grabs for some 600,000 residents. That makes the odds of striking a big payout much better than the lottery.

Wednesday, September 12th 2012, 10:04 pm

By: News 9


The state of Oklahoma has hundreds of millions of dollars in property and cash up for grabs for some 600,000 residents. That makes the odds of striking a big payout much better than the lottery.

The money and property are just sitting inside the State Capitol Building waiting to be claimed. Starting Thursday at the Oklahoma State Fair, officials will be on hand to let Oklahomans know what cash and property they may be entitled to. It's better odds than one in seven.

"I knew I had unclaimed property, but I thought it was like $100 or something," Oklahoma resident Cary Pirrong said.

Pirrong actually had about $2,000 waiting for him. Several months ago, Pirrong learned some lost cash with his name on it had been turned over to the state.

Read More Stories About The 2012 Oklahoma State Fair.

"Along time ago, my dad had given me stock in the Boston Celtics," Pirrong said.

Unclaimed final paychecks, abandoned bank accounts, and safe deposit boxes are just some of the examples of where the state gets unclaimed money and property.

"We have several amounts in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for people that we'd like to return," Deputy Treasurer Tim Allen said.

One of the state's vaults is nearly at capacity and the contents could be auctioned off as soon as next year; unless, of course, enough people claim their property at the state fair. The money collected from the auction is held for the rightful owners. Lately, officials are seeing more and more medals honoring America's finest.

"The one thing we are not going to sell, ever, are these military medals because these were awarded to our service members and we need to return them to the rightful owners," Allen said.

So, take the time when walking through the fair this year. Stop by the treasurer's booth. You might be surprised.

"If they say you have anything, I'd fill out the form and get it submitted ASAP," Pirrong said.

Over the past 12 years, between the state fair and the fair in Tulsa, the Treasurer's Office has given out about $5 million dollars to roughly 11,000 people.

You can find the treasurer's booth at the Cox Pavilion at the Oklahoma State Fair Park.

Daily Schedule at Oklahoma State Fair

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