Anyone running into Jesus Leonard would assume he was homeless. He is seen every day hanging around the Off Track Betting Parlors in Midtown Manhattan. With his long bushy beard and graying hair in ponytails and worn out track suit he would appear to be a down on his luck gambler, but in fact he earns on average $45,000 a year. Jesus has been spending his time at the betting parlors for the past 10 years, and has yet to place a bet.
So how does he make his money? According to an article in the New York Times, Jesus picks up the trash at off track parlors, sorts through them to find discarded tickets and then takes them to a scanner and cashes in the winning tickets that were thrown away. He was adamant in the interview that he always claims his winnings on his taxes and carefully keeps records of each ticket he cashes in. Jesus is married with two teenage children, and uses this money to support his family.
He started small with just one betting parlor's trash, but has since expanded his operation to include several other parlors in Manhattan. The employees at the betting parlors know him and don't mind him taking their trash because he doesn't bother anyone or get in their customer's way. Jesus waits patiently at the end of the day until the parlor puts the trash out, he picks it up and takes it back home with him on the subway. He has enlisted a few friends to pick up bags from other area parlors for $25 a bag. When he gets home, he picks through the bags to gather up the discarded tickets. By the next morning, he has a satchel filled with tickets, rubber banded into groups of 300. He heads back to the city on the subway and starts his day by scanning each ticket. After taking a lunch break, he cashes in the winnings. On average, Jesus makes $100-$300 a day. Some days it is large jackpots, other days it is only small amounts.
According to the article, Jesus said
“At first, my wife thought I was crazy, but then she realized I was finding a lot of money in winning tickets, sometimes $200 a day,” he said. “After a while, she didn’t think I was so crazy.”
Jesus has many friends in Midtown, and always is generous with his winnings. He has carved out his own niche and everyone on the street knows that all of the discarded tickets belong to him. A short order cook that was interviewed had this to say about his friend's unusual job-
“Everybody in here loves Jesus,” he said. “When Jesus wins, we all eat, and we all drink. Jesus is a very generous man.”
According to the New York State Racing and Wagering board, gamblers discard on average 8.5 million dollars worth of winnings each year. And that is why Jesus says that he isn't planning to stop anytime soon.
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