AP: Ohio lottery director withheld info concerning keno

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The director of the Ohio Lottery Commission says he withheld key information from state lawmakers this spring when they were considering the future of the state's new keno game.

Michael Dolan testified today in Franklin County Common Pleas Court that he knew a new lottery vendor had been selected when he entered a heated legislative committee meeting May 5 that would determine keno's fate. But he told lawmakers the decision on the vendor had not been made.

Dolan said he was waiting for permission from Gov. Ted Strickland to announce the successful vendor.

Strickland's spokesman says Dolan did not mislead lawmakers. He says Atlanta-based Intralot Inc. had been given a draft of a contract, but had not been signed at that time.

A losing vendor, GTECH Corp. of Providence, R.I., had been the state's lottery vendor since 1985. It filed a lawsuit questioning whether the state followed proper procedure in awarding Intralot the lottery contract, which extends for 10 years and is worth about $170 million.