US: Lucky dad looking to buy chocolate milk for his kids ends up winning $1 Mn prize money

A dad who wanted to surprise his kids by offering chocolate milk to them has ended up getting surprised himself as he won $1,000,000 in a Platinum Jackpot. According to a statement released by Virginia Lottery, Dennis Willoughby only wanted to buy some chocolate milk for his kids and much to his luck, he entered the 7-Eleven at 9700 Jeff Davis Highway in Richmond. While he was looking for surprise gifts to give to his children, the man hailing from North Chesterfield decided to pick up some lottery tickets at random. Unaware of the forthcoming fortune, he scratched the ticket. Much to his shock, the man who wanted only to buy milk chocolate for his kids ended up becoming the winner of top prize worth $1,000,000.

"He won the choice of either the full $1 million prizes in annual payments over 30 years or a one-time cash option of $640,205 before taxes. He chose the cash option," the Virginia lottery said in a statement released on December 29, last year. "The $1,000,000 Platinum Jackpot game is one of the dozens of scratchers available from the Virginia Lottery. It features prize money ranging from $10 up to $1,000,000. Mr Willoughby is the second player to claim the top prize, which means there is one more top prize-winning ticket unclaimed in this game," added the statement.  

Virginia Lottery generates more than $2 million per day

The odds of winning the top prize in this game are 1 in 16,32,000. The chances of winning any prize are 1 in 3.92, according to the lottery winning probability set by the Virginia jackpot firm. Besides, the store receives a $10,000 bonus from the Virginia Lottery for selling the winning ticket. Authorized by Virginia voters in a successful 1987 referendum, the Virginia Lottery generates more than $2 million per day for Virginia’s K-12 public schools. In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2021, lottery customers helped generate more than $765 million in funding for public education.

Image: Valottery