Lottery player has a ‘feeling’ she will win big. Then prediction comes true in NC
A lottery player thought a jackpot prize was in her future — and her prediction was spot on.
“I just had a feeling like I was going to win big soon,” Marlen Rios De Torres told the North Carolina Education Lottery in a Feb. 22 news release. “I could feel it.”
Rios De Torres scored a six-figure prize after she went to a Harris Teeter grocery store in Durham. At the location in the Hope Valley Commons shopping center, officials said she bought a ticket for the 20X The Cash progressive jackpot game.
She learned her $5 ticket won a huge prize, meaning her premonition came true.
“I was very excited,” Rios De Torres told lottery officials. “Just happy and surprised.”
In 20X The Cash, players who spend $5 on their tickets and match enough numbers win half of the jackpot prize. That means Rios De Torres won $153,919 instead of the full jackpot amount of $307,838, according to game rules.
Rios De Torres, who lives in Durham, kept $110,054 after taxes. She said she plans to put her prize money toward bills.
It’s not the first time someone with a hunch got richer. In South Carolina, a lottery player with a “lucky feeling” scored a huge windfall, McClatchy News reported in October.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhen gambling is more than a game
Gambling is designed to be a source of entertainment.
If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.
This story was originally published February 22, 2024 at 3:12 PM with the headline "Lottery player has a ‘feeling’ she will win big. Then prediction comes true in NC."
