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Gloucester man wins $1 million in Virginia’s New Year’s Millionaire Raffle

Posted at 2:28 PM, Jan 07, 2016
and last updated 2016-01-07 14:30:54-05

As word got around that a $1 million winning ticket in Virginia’s New Year’s Millionaire Raffle had been sold nearby, James Lewis didn’t get excited. Someone told him the ticket had been bought at a 7-Eleven in Gloucester Point.

“I hadn’t bought my ticket at that store, so I knew I wasn’t the winner,” he said

But the information he received was wrong. The winning ticket was actually bought at the 7-Eleven at 3963 George Washington Highway in Hayes. And as it turns out, he had that ticket! After returning from a New Year’s weekend trip to the Eastern Shore, he checked the winning numbers and made a startling discovery.

Powerball jackpot hits record $700 million

“I think I just won a million dollars!” he said.

His ticket, #051366, was one of three tickets drawn on New Year’s Day to win the $1 million top prize. On January 7, Mr. Lewis returned to the store to receive his check from the Virginia Lottery. The store received a $10,000 bonus from the Lottery for selling the winning ticket.

The Gloucester man said he has no immediate plans for his winnings.

The other two $1 million winning tickets in Virginia’s New Year’s Millionaire Raffle were bought in South Boston and Suffolk. Six tickets won $25,000 each. Those tickets were bought in Hampton, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Yorktown and two in Arlington. An additional 300 tickets each won $500.

And this year, there’s something new: The New Year’s Millionaire Raffle Promotion is an extra chance to win. Players who submit an entry form, received when they bought their Raffle ticket, will be entered for a chance to win one of twenty $1,000 cash prizes. Entry deadline is January 8 with the cash prize drawing on January 13.