California woman wins $10 million from lotto scratch-off ticket bought by accidental button push
(Courtesy: California Lottery)
LOS ANGELES - A rude bump at the grocery store briefly annoyed a California woman, but it ultimately turned her into a multi-millionaire.
The incident happened back in November 2021, according to the California Lottery, which doesn't immediately reveal the identity of winners for privacy reasons, FOX 5 San Diego reports.
LaQuedra Edwards said she went to a Vons supermarket in the Los Angeles area to buy $40 worth of scratch-off lottery tickets from a vending machine.
She put the cash into the machine, but as she was about to select what tickets to buy, "some rude person" bumped into her, causing her to accidentally hit the button for a $30 "200X Scratchers" ticket.
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"He just bumped into me, didn't say a thing, and just walked out the door," Edwards said.
She was annoyed not only because of the person who ran into her, but because it meant she spent 75% of her money on one ticket instead of being able to buy her usual selection of lower-priced tickets.
That irritation didn't last long.
She got into the car and scratched the $30 ticket, only to realize she'd just won the top prize of $10 million.
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"I didn’t really believe it at first, but I got on the 405 freeway and kept looking down at (the ticket), and I almost crashed my car," she said. "I pulled over, looked at it again and again, scanned it with my (California Lottery mobile) app, and I just kept thinking, 'This can’t be right.'"
"I’m still in shock," she added. "All I remember saying once I found out how much I just won was, ‘I’m rich!’"
According to lottery officials, Edwards plans to use the prize money to start a nonprofit and buy a house.
The grocery store where she bought her winning ticket received a $50,000 bonus.
FOX 11 Los Angeles contributed to this report.