He came for cigars but left a Virginia convenience store with a lottery jackpot prize
A man who went to a convenience store for cigars on a Friday evening kicked off his weekend with more than tobacco, according to an Aug. 26 Virginia Lottery news release.
Sherod Hawkins stopped at Fas Mart in Palmyra, Virginia — about 65 miles northwest of Richmond — and decided to buy a Payday Bonus lottery ticket on a whim.
“I was in the store, and I looked up and saw that ticket,” he told Virginia Lottery officials. “I said, ‘Okay, let’s go ahead and get it.’”
When he revealed the numbers of his scratch-off in the car, Hawkins couldn’t believe what he saw: a top-prize $500,000 win.
“I thought, ‘Wait a minute! This can’t be right!’” he said.
His chances of winning were 1 in 1,672,800, according to the news release. Hawkins, who works in information technology, told officials he plans to use the winnings to help his father retire and take care of his family.
He had the first of three top winning Payday Bonus tickets. The Virginia Lottery website says there are still two more unclaimed.
This story was originally published August 26, 2022 at 9:26 AM with the headline "He came for cigars but left a Virginia convenience store with a lottery jackpot prize."
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