A couple found a few lottery tickets they had forgotten about since last year. As luck would have it, one was worth a million dollars.
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It's been a small while since my last crazy lottery ticket story. Maybe it's because I get too jealous about the lucky finds and circumstances. Well, to be fair, I never actually buy lottery tickets, so I can't really be mad that I don't win.
Although the couple won't be walking home with the full million dollars, free money is free money, and they walked into a lot of it.
The New Jersey couple, who wanted to remain anonymous (to not attract any long-lost relatives and sleazy friends), found the ticket in a drawer that had been sitting there for almost half a year. The couple spoke to lottery officials about their story, which was confirmed by PEOPLE, who was in communication with a spokesperson.
"I was in the house and I just opened the drawer and I saw the tickets," the Mercer County couple explained. "I decided to get them checked."
The three tickets were found in a random drawer. They were previously purchased, but stowed away and forgotten about. The family had been sitting on a million dollars since New Year's Eve. If their New Year's Resolution was to win the lottery, well, it's a good thing they waited.
Couple Scan The Long-Lost Lottery Ticket
They hit the store, likely the same Speedy Mart Food Store in West Trenton they bought them from, to scan their tickets. Two were duds, but one was a winner. And that's all they needed.
Giddy, they went back home to check just how much money was hidden in the ticket on the New Jersey Lottery website. "I thought maybe $1,000. Or $10,000," they said. But then it was confirmed.
"I couldn't believe it — $1 million!"
Lottery winners never receive the full amount listed on the ticket. It was never revealed how much money they took home, and if they're accepting a reduced lump sum or installments. Either way, they said they're going to use their winnings to help their children avoid debt.
I guess in this case, the house did win. Their house.
