California Store Celebrates After Selling 1.73 BILLION Lottery Ticket
A California liquor store has celebrated selling a lucrative lottery ticket worth $1.73 billion - with the clerk who is believed to have handed out the lucky numbers declaring, 'somebody owes me a new truck.'
The life-changing ticket was sold at Midway Market & Liquor in Frazier Park, around an hour from Los Angeles, as a tense 12 weeks of rollovers came to a close Wednesday night.
Although the winner has yet to come forward, store owners May and Jacklin Khalil also netted a big payday as they are set to receive at least $1 million just for selling the ticket.
Duke, the staffer who sold the winning ticket, added to CBS Los Angeles: 'The phone has been ringing off the hook... somebody owes me a new truck.'
The employee said he's certain the winner is a local from the small town of 2,500 residents as people come to the store 'religiously' every week to get their tickets for upcoming drawings.
The winning numbers were 22, 24, 40, 52, 64 and the Powerball was 10.
The single ticket was sold at Midway Market & Liquor in Frazier Park, in a tiny California community of just 2,500 people
Duke, the liquor store worker who is believed to have sold the winning ticket, speculated that the winner was a local as the store is nestled in a small town. He joked that the winner 'owes me a new truck'
The huge payout is the second largest lottery prize in US history, after Edwin Castro scooped a $2.04 billion Powerball win in California last November.
Castro has gone on to make a number of lavish real estate purchases, fueling speculation over who the nation's latest billionaire lottery winner may be.
The liquor store is roughly 100 miles north of downtown Los Angeles and is nestled in the Los Padres National Forest.
As it is set away from Interstate-5, Duke said he believes it was won by a local in the small community where the median household income sits at $42,200 in 2020.
'I'm pretty sure it's a local,' he said. 'There's people that come in every day to get their tickets. We know them by name, so I'm sure somebody's going to be screaming up and down.'
He added that huge excitement has built up among locals after news spread, and the 'phone has been ringing off the hook, people saying congratulations.'
'A lot of customers come in every day to get their tickets religiously, and a lot of them said 'If I win, I'm gonna get you a new truck... so where's my truck?' he joked.
Chris Khalil, right, helps a customer at the Midway Market & Liquor store where a winning lottery ticket was sold in Frazier Park. The winner has yet to come foward, but the store netted a huge payday
May and Jacklin Khalil, the owners of the store, celebrated and said they were 'so happy' after learning that they were set to receive $1 million just for selling the winning numbers
The winning numbers were: 22, 24, 40, 52, 64 and the Powerball 10
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Owners May and Jacklin Khalil were left stunned to learn that they had sold the numbers, with the mysterious winner not the only one receiving good luck as the duo are set to take home at least $1 million.
'We're so excited,' May Khalil told NBC Los Angeles. '(Jacklin's) son called me and said, 'We won.' I didn't believe that. I thought, he's joking.'
After initially believing news was a joke, the family-owned store erupted into celebrations - which included friends and a bottle of tequila.
'We're so happy,' they said. 'It's so exciting.'
The win comes after a long 12-week streak that extended back to July 19, when another California lottery player won $1.08 billion after matching all six numbers.
Lottery officials allow 180 days for the winner to claim their prize.
The lengthy rollover was no surprise, however, as Powerball´s terrible odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate big jackpots, with prizes becoming ever larger as they repeatedly roll over when no one wins.
It comes after another lucky Californian, Edwin Castro, broke records by scooping $2.04 billion last November.
Like most lottery winners, Castro opted to take a lump sum payment which reduced his winnings to $997.6 million - with Wednesday's winner taking home $757 million if they do the same.
While still an eye-popping amount of money, as a percentage of the advertised jackpot amount it's the lowest its been since at least 2003, just 44 percent.
Khalil is one of the workers at the store in the tiny town. Employees say locals come in 'religiously' to get their lottery tickets
On Wednesday, just 44 percent of the advertised $1.73 billion jackpot will be available as a lump sum. That is the lowest it has been since as far back as 2003
In January 21, the winner of the $730 million jackpot cashed out a whopping $550 million. The lump sum was therefore 75 percent of the advertised jackpot
Edwin Castro, the winner of the record-breaking $2 Billion Powerball jackpot, is moving on up and adding to his real-estate portfolio
Castro's life took a dramatic turn when he purchased the winning ticket from a local gas station last year before claiming a lump sum of $997.6m in February
Castro has gone on to make a number of real estate purchases, including a sprawling $47 million Los Angeles compound alongside three separate California mansions totaling $76 million.
The massive LA property has seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms, a koi pond and an enormous infinity pool overlooking the city.
He was also seen driving away from a bank in a vintage Porsche earlier this year.
Around 98 percent of all lottery victors choose to take their winnings in a lump sum, a decision that shrinks the winnings significantly while wealth managers advise against it.
For those rare few that take home the full 'headline' jackpot amount, their winnings are paid in annuities over a 30-year period.
Although the initial annuity payment is not disclosed by the Powerball, in the case of the Mega Millions lottery it is around 1.5 percent of the jackpot amount.
For example, in the case of Wednesday's $1.73 billion jackpot, the first payment would be around $26 million. Each year for the next 30, the winner will be paid the same amount plus 5 percent.
On year 10 they would receive around $40 million and their final payment will be around $107million. At that point the total amount they ever received over the thirty years would be around $1.73 billion.
However, come 2053, when the winner is paid their final installment, the dollar is expected to have less buying power due to inflation.
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