St. Petersburg, FLA. — A man in Florida stole thousands of dollars in scratch-off lottery tickets from a Circle K store... then tried to cash them in at that same store.

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Justin Farley has been hit with federal charges after he stole $7,000 in scratch-off lottery tickets from a convenience store and attempted to redeem them at a 7-Eleven.

After failing to redeem the tickets there, Farley returned to the Circle K where he stole them from and tried to cash in on the tickets again.

He was unsuccessful.

Farley then left and returned to the Circle K minutes later, only to come up empty a third time.

That’s when the 43-year-old went back to the 7-Eleven, wearing a mask and armed with a replica Glock, and stole $120 from the cash register and a pack of cigarettes.

Farley was arrested after being pulled over by the police, and admitted to the robberies, stating that he “needed money.”

The suspect now faces charges for interference with commerce by threat or violence under the Hobbs Act, which could result in up to 20 years in prison.

Farley also has a lengthy criminal history spanning over two decades.

He was charged federally on Tuesday.

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