Ticket Printing Mistake Helps 40-Year-Old Man In US Win $1 Million Lottery Prize

A man in United States' Iowa won a $1 million lottery prize after the clerk made a mistake printing his tickets. According to CNN, Josh Buster, a 40-year-old chef from West Burlington, had asked a clerk at a convenience store for five “easy-pick” plays for the Mega Millions drawing. However, Mr Buster revealed that the clerk initially printed just one play and then printed the four remaining plays on a separate ticket. 

“I feel like that changed the numbers that I would have gotten if he had put them all on one instead of making that mistake,” Mr Buster was quoted as saying by the CNN. 

At first, Mr Buster struggled to believe his luck. “I don't usually have good luck, so I thought it was a mistake and there was going to be an error,” he said. Further, he stated that he Googled the lottery numbers to make sure he had the right ones and to his surprise he did. “I am just waiting to wake up from a dream,” the chef added.  

It is to mention that Mr Buster's $1 million prize was a share of a $20 million jackpot. He was able to match the first five numbers, however, he didn't get the Mega Ball number. 

Now, according to CNN, Mr Buster will use his prize money to make car payments, pay off his mother's mortgage, and save for his retirement. “It will take away a lot of my stress in my life – no more of the financial worries,” the winning chef said. Notably, after taxes, Mr Buster will take home $710,000, according to Fox Business. 

Also Read | Indian-Origin Shop Manager Jailed For 28 Months For Cheating On Lottery Win In UK

While Mr Buster was lucky enough to win the lottery, in another bizarre case in the United Kingdom, an Indian-origin shop manager tried to cheat an elderly man out of his lottery winnings of 1,30,000 pounds. According to PTI, in early March, Narendra Gill was sentenced by a UK court to 28 months in prison. He checked the numbers of a lucky dip lottery ticket for 81-year-old Frank Gowland, but as the ticket had the requisite numbers, she lied to him and kept the ticket stub for herself.