$188 Million Powerball Winner, Marie Holmes, Being Sued by Local Pastor

Shallotte, NC — 27-year old Marie Holmes, the woman from North Carolina that recently won the $188 million Powerball lottery, is back in the news. The first time, it was about her spending $21 million to bail her boyfriend ouf of jail. But this is time, a local pastor is reportedly suing her for $10 million for reneging on a verbal contract.

Holmes, an African American mother of four children, took home a lump sum of $127 million after she hit the jackpot back in February 2015. And now Pastor Kevin Matthews, who happens to be white, is suing her for backing out of their verbal agreement. Matthews says that he is experiencing emotional and mental distress because Holmes no longer wants to give him the $1.5 million that she agreed to give him to purchase land to build a retreat facility.

“Because of the emotional distress and mental stress, they put me through, I had to start taking more medicine for anxiety and depression due to this situation,” Matthews said. He even told reporters, “God led him to her house and he prayed with her.”

He also says that he met Holmes and ministered to her and three other people on several occasions at her new home. He says that during one of those meetings, he presented a proposal to Holmes about three different plans that need financial backing (a $1 million project, a $1.5 million project and a $2 million project). Matthews says that Holmes agreed to help him with the $1.5 million project, which would be the purchase of land to build a retreat center that he says he had been praying about for years.

Meanwhile, Holmes’ attorney, Ruth Sheehan, of The Francis Law Firm, has issued a statement saying that she was not aware of the situation or the lawsuit.

It seems that it’s true what they say: “More money, more problems!”