Lottery officials in Laos have been forced to publicly deny that their product is fixed following a wave of complaints.

On Monday, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported on a growing sentiment among Laotian lottery players that the winning numbers were being manipulated by lottery operators to avoid paying out large sums.

The allegedly nefarious tactics include a spate of winning numbers that Laotians deem unlucky, and thus most players were unlikely to have selected these numbers when making their purchases. Three consecutive drawings last month ended in the number 67, which Laotians associate with bad luck, apparently because the animal-based lottery sheet links that number with turtles.

Ahead of the October 14 draw, players reported lottery machines rejecting requests for three-digit numbers ending in 09, a number Laotians view as lucky because the same sheet links those digits with the buffalo. That day’s jackpot ended up going to tickets bearing the number 509.