A lottery player’s luck almost ran out this week after a ticket worth more than $24 million was nearly forgotten in their home.
An anonymous individual with a Lotto ticket came forward to claim the winnings two days before their ticket was set to expire.
News coverage of the unclaimed Lottery prize escalated in the days leading up the deadline, causing the individual to check their house, where they discovered the winning ticket in a pile of other old tickets, the New York Lottery said.
The individual went to a lottery office in Lower Manhattan on Tuesday. The ticket was set to expire Thursday.
Lottery rules allow winners to claim their prize up to a year after a drawing.
“We are thrilled that this lucky winner was able to locate this life-changing ticket,” said Gweneth Dean, director of the Commission’s Division of the Lottery. “We look forward to introducing this multimillionaire who came forward in the nick of time.”
The New York Lottery said they will reveal the identity of the winner after a security background check review.
The winning numbers were 05-12-13-22-25-35 and the bonus number was 51.