Homeless man wins $1M lottery prize: ‘Can't wait to get off the streets’
Store manager drove winner to lotto office to start ticket verification process
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A homeless man in California was shocked after learning he won a $1-million lottery prize from a scratch ticket.
Wilson Samaan, the manager of Sandy’s Deli-Liquor in San Luis Obisco, Calif. where the ticket was purchased, told KSBY that the longtime customer is homeless.
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“He came to the store, he scratched it and is like, ‘Oh, my God. Is that real?’ Wilson, can you come and take a look?‘” the manager recounted to the outlet.
Samaan grabbed the ticket from the man’s hand and went to the machine to double check.
“He’s like, ‘Man, I’m not homeless anymore!’”
After telling the customer that he “hit the jackpot,” the man initially thought it was $100,000 before Samaan corrected him.
“No, bro. That’s $1 million,” he told the man before congratulating him and exchanging a high five.
“That’s the winning ticket up there, he matched one number and the price was $1 million,” Samaan said, proudly pointing to a copy of the winning ticket above the register.
Samaan, who has worked at the store since 2013, said this is the first time someone has ever won a prize that large at the shop.
He also did more than just confirm that the customer was a winner — Samaan “drove him to Fresno” to verify his ticket at the California Lottery office.
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“Do I want to send it in the mail?” the man asked the store manager.
“I told him, ‘That’s a million-dollar ticket. No, I will drive you.’”
A spokesperson from the CA State Lottery says there are a few things that need to be done before the money can be awarded.
“With a million-dollar ticket like this, the person who comes forward can expect a very thorough vetting process,” Carolyn Becker told the outlet.
“We process over 10,000 winning claims a month, so that’s part of why it takes a little bit of time.”
The winner declined an interview with the news outlet, but told community reporter Karson Wells that this is a “life-changing” amount of money, KSBY reported.
He plans to make a down payment on a home, get a car, invest, and save the rest.
The man spent $25 on two $5 Triple Red 777 scratchers, plus a few smaller tickets, Samaan told the San Francisco Chronicle.
In a video posted to Instagram, the overjoyed lottery winner said he “just can’t wait to get off the streets.”
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